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TO THE MEMORY OF 


ee N ARE WwW REG ELE. 


DEATH OF GEN. A. R. 


WRIGHT. 


Ampros—E RANsoM WRIGHT IS DEAD! 
This simple announcement will touch 
the hearts of thousands of Georgians 
and many who dwell beyond our State 
confines. At ten o’clock Saturday, just 
as the sun, which had hid his face 
so long in cloudy realms, burst forth 
into effulgence, the soul of AMBROSE 
Ransom Wricur passed from the ma- 
terial to the spiritual world. Let us 
accept the token of the sun, and trust 
that this our brother, who had done such 
manly duty in dark and evil days, 
has merely spurned the trappings of the 
flesh ; that serious loss to this com- 
munity, to this State, to a host of 
friends, to a stricken family, is infinite 
great gain to him. 

And yet how poor a thing to those 
who remain is all human consolation, 
however pathetic, however true! Into 
the chamber of death 
Healer slone can enter with power as 


the great 


well as tenderness. 
To Him alone must those dear ones 


who called him husband and father look 
for balm which comes of Heaven. 

To the people of Augusta and the 
Highth District of Georgia, this blow 
will be heavy indeed. How fondly, 
how proudly, we looked forward to the 
day, when, the aspiration of his youth 
and manhood fully achieved, Gen. 
Wright should stand in the Congress of 
these States and make eloquently voice- 
We felt 
that his noble physical presenee would 
command admiration ; and that his sonor- 
ous utterance, his fertile wit, his ready 


ful the spirit of old Georgia. 


argumentation, his matchless sarcasm, 
his dramatic power, his executive ges- 
ture, his apt knowledge, his command-— 
ing individuality, his gallant bearing, 
his gladiatorial skill—the sword of Mar- 
cellus and the buckler of Fabius—would 
cause the North to hear, and the South 
to feel uplifted. This is what we hoped, 
and this is not tobe. Saddest of sad 
words—this is not to be ! The vigorous 
brain, which fashioned so many brilliant 
fancies and pondered so many majestic 
thoughts, is still and cold and pulseless, 


4 TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


It makes music no more. The strong 
arm which moved meteor-like on the 
red field of war is stiff and motionless. 
The tongue which charmed us all be- 
times in the gatherings of party, in the 
hustings of the political arena, before 
the austere forum of Justice, in social re- 
laxation, in so many places and in such 
infinite variety—that marvellous tongue 
gives forth nosound, forevermore. Those 
fingers which grasped the pen when the 
sword had been sheathed, only to be- 
come mightier than the sword; those 
fingers which, moving so many men to 
so many deeds of high emprise, till 
Georgia, redeemed from the mountain 
range to the stormy Atlantic, hailed him 
as a chief and deliverer—those fingers 
are nerveless; and the pen, the wonder- 
working pen, has fallen upon the fallen 


sword. 
And does nothing, then, remain but 


death, now that Wright is dead? And 
are those matchless qualities which once 
were his as perishable as the frame that 
shrined them! No! 
They all remain as precious memo- 


A thousand times, 
no. 
rials, as beacon-lights for the future, as 


eternal protests of trampled right against 
victorious wrong. They belong to Geor- 
gia’s most glorious as well as her most 
That which was physicial 
will go to dust, to the generations of the 
tomb. But in mind‘and in spirit he will 


gloomy era. 


survive. 


‘* These shall resist the empire of decay 

When time is o’er and worlds haye passed 
away, 

Deep in its cell the perished heart may lie, 

But that which warmed it once can neyer die !” 


The appalling shock paralyzes our 
From the depths of profound 
grief expression becomes unutterable. 


pen. 


To trace by line and lineamentthe life of 
our friend and associate is beyond the 
powers of muscle, brain and thought. 
To others, or to another time, we must 
trust the last sad tribute of affection 
and esteem—to make up the record of 
our loss—to perpetuate the memory of 
his virtues—to linger in the noble recol- 
lections of an upright man, an honest 
citizen, a true Georgian, a true Chris- 
tian, a great mind, 

To-day but let the funeral bell toll 
the requiem of grief. 


AmsrosE Ransom WRIGHT was born on 
the twenty-sixth day of April, 1826, in 
the town of Louisville, Jefferson county, 
Georgia. He was the oldest son of 
Ambrose Wright, a wealthy planter, who 
married Sarah Hammond, of Baldwin 
county. When between fourteen and 
fifteen years of age, he left school and 
commenced the study of law in the 
office of Hon. Herschel V. Johnson. 
Endowed with a fine mind, he made the 
most rapid progress in study. When 


not quite seventeen years of age, he 
married Miss Mary H. Savage, a 
daughter of Dr. William Savage, of 
Augusta, and half sister of Miss Anne 
Polk, the wife of Governor Johnson. 
After their marriage, the young 
couple were thrown entirely upon their 
own resources. It was then that the 
indomitable energy and the untiring 
industry of the man were made ap- 
parent. Undismayed by poverty, and 
undaunted by privation, he went 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 5 


resolutely to work upon a small tract of 
land. His wife and himself lived in a 
rude cabin. His days were spent in 
active toil upon the farm—often him- 
self following the plow, and using the 
hoe or axe. His nights he passed at 
home, reading or studying law by the 
blazing light of a pine-knot fire. His 
persevering labors had their reward 
in the success of a comfortable 
living. After being admitted to 
the bar, he determined to practice 
law in Southwest Georgia—a country 
which had the same attractions for 
young men in those days as the great 
West has in our own time—and moved 
to Dooly county. His new home proved 
so unhealthy that he did not remain 
there but came back to Jefferson. 
In 1850 his father died, leaving him- 
self and his brother and sister 
a competency. He now commenced 
actively the practice of law in Louis- 
ville—the county town of Jefferson— 
and soon obtained a fine practice.— 
He entered politics as a member of the 
Democratic party, and was a candidate 
for the Legislature on that ticket, but 
was defeated by seventeen votes. When 
the American party was formed some 
years later, he joined that organization, 
aod acted with it until its dissolution, 
In the early part of 1854 he lost the wife 
whom he so dearly loved. Two years 
after the Presidential contest came on, 
and he was made an elector on the Fill- 
more ticket for the State at Large. In 
this capacity he stumped the middle and 
upper portion of the State, and made 
great reputation for himself on the hust- 
ings. His was the eloquence, the ready 
wit, the quick retort, the apt illustra- 
tion, the pointed anecdote, the convinc- 
ing argument, which make up the suc- 
cessful stump-speaker, and which drew 
immense crowds. In the latter part of the 
succeeding year he married his second 
wife, Miss Carrie C. Hazlehurst, daughter 
of Robert Hazlehurst, Esq., of Bruns- 
wick, Ga. While in Brunswick he was 


employed with Gen. Francis Bartow, of 
Savannah, in the somewhat celebrated 
Styles case—representing the prisoner 
and procuring his acquittal. In 1858 
he was the nominee of his party for Con- 
gress from the Eighth District, runhing 
against Hon. J. J. Jones, of Burke, 
who was the candidate of the Demo- 
erats in place of the Hon. Alexander H. 
stephens. Party feeling ran high, and 
the campaign was conducted with great 
bitterness on both sides. Gen. Wright 
carried into the contest all his talents, his 
energy and his vigor, and, though strug- 
gling without hope of success, made a 
gallant fight. He was defeated, of 
course, but the immense majority which 
Mr. Stephens left was greatly reduced. 
In the month of January, 1859, General 
Wright determined to seek a wider and 
more inviting field, and moved from Jef- 
ferson to Richmond county, where he 
formed a copartnership with Judge 
William Gibson, and continued the 
practice of his profession. In the 
Presidential campaign of that year he 
was a warm supporter of the Bell and 
Everett, or Union ticket, as it was 
termed. 

Upon the result of this election 
General Wright—always an ardent 
Southern and States Rights man— 
believing the liberties of his section 
imperilled, thought the South should 
withdraw from the Union, and was an 
earnest adyovate of secession. When 
the Constitutional Convention of Geor- 
gia passed the ordinance of secession, 
it also appointed him a Commissioner to 
Maryland, and Goy. H. V. Johnson Com- 
missioner to Virginia, for the purpose of 
inducing those States to secede and cast 
their fortunes with their Southern sis- 
ters. He visited Maryland, but accom- 
plished nothing. He found the people 
of the State, almost to a man, in favor 
of secession, but the artful manceuvring 
of their Executiye, Governor Hicks, 
prevented their voice from being heard 
until their State was over-run with sol- 


ee ee 


6 TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


diers, and they were delivered up, bound 
hand and foot, to the Federal Govern- 
ment. Failing in his mission, General 
Wright returned to Augusta, and began 
to prepare for the storm of war which 
was about to burst upon the country. 
One of the first regiments to leave the 
State was the ‘‘ Third Georgia,” com- 
posed of companies from Augusta and 
Middle Georgia. In one of these com- 
panies, the ‘‘Confederate Light Guards,” 
he enlisted as a private, in the month of 
April, 1861. Soon afterwards the regi- 
ment was ordered to Portsmouth, Vir- 
ginia. Here an election for field officers 
was held, and he was chosen Colonel, 
defeating Foster Blodgett, who ran for 
the same position. The regiment was 
attached to the brigade of Gen. Albert 
G. Blanchard, who commanded the post. 
A camp of instruction was formed 
to fit the men for active service, and 
General Wright exhibited the talent and 
capacity in military which he had dis- 
played in civil affairs. Indeed, he 
seemed especially fitted for military pur- 
suits. Heapplied himself thoroughly, and 
books of tactics, and military treatises 
were studied as closely as legal and po- 
litical writers had been in time of peace. 
He was tall, finely formed, of com- 
manding appearance, and looked every 
inch a soldier. He was a rigid dis- 
ciplinarian—neglecting no duty and 
disobeying no command himself, he per- 
mitted neither neglect nor disobedience 
with those under him. In the Fall of 
1861 his regiment first saw service, The 
18th Indiana was encamped upon an is- 
land or the banks off the coast of North 
Carolina, called Chicamicomico. It was 
known that they possessed alarge quanti- 
ty of stores, and the Confederate authori- 
ties determined to attack them. An expe- 
dition was fitted out, consisting of a 
small Confederate steamer and three 
companies of the Third Georgia, the 
whole under the command of General 
Wright. Under his direction it proved 
a complete success. A Federal steamer, 


the Fanny, was captured, loaded with 
large quantities of munitions of war and 
provisions, A landing was effected on 
Chicamicomico, and the enemy attacked. 
After making a short stand they were 
defeated, and retreated in great confu- 
sion through the marshes, losing a num- 
ber of men in killed and wounded and 
abandoning several hundred stands of 
arms. In this affair General Wright be- 
haved with conspicuous coolness and 
gallantry, and won the confidence of 
officers and men. While the enemy 
were retreating and the Confederates 
were in pursuit, General Wright rode 
alone to a squad of four, who 
had been cut off in a small marsh, 
and demanded their surrender. They 
had thrown away their guns, but re- 
plied with pistol shots, which killed his 
horse. Rapidly disengaging himself, he 
threw his arm around the neck of the 
soldier nearest him and, holding a pistol 
over the shoulder of his living breast- 
work, he compelled the surrender of 
the others. His conduct and his gen- 
eralship on this occasion were compli- 
mented in the highest terms in the re- 
port of General Blanchard. 

After this fight the regiment returned 
to Portsmouth, where it remained all 
the Winter, and its commander was re- 
elected Colonel without opposition. In 
the Spring of 1862 he was a second time 
entrusted with a separate command, and 
again showed himself a soldier. 

In the month of April, 1862, Gen. 
Wright was placed in command of a 
force, consisting of his own regiment, 
a small number of North Carolina 
militia, fourteen pieces of artillery and 
a company of Southampton cayalry, and 
sent to South Mills, on the North Caro- 
lina coast, to meet a threatened expedi- 
tion of the enemy. On the morning of 
the 19th the enemy, consisting of the 
9th, 2istand 89th New York, 2ist Massa- 
chusetts, 6th New Hampshire and 5lst 
Pennsylvania, under command of Gen. 
Reno, approached from Camden Court 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


House. Gen. Wright advanced to meet 
them and selected an admirable position 
to await their attack. His force was 
formed on Sawyer’s Lane, a narrow 
causeway leading through aswamp. A 
large ditch, some distance in front of the 


line, was filled with rails which wereset | 
on fire in order that it might not be oc- | 


cupied by the enemy. His own men 
were protected by rails, and the artillery 
placed in the road just where it emerged 
from the woods. The enemy made his 
appearance and commenced the attack 
at twelve o’clock, endeavoring to storm 
the Confederate position and relying on 
their superior numvers for success. 
They were beaten back, but again re- 
newed the charge and were a second 
time defeated. Four times within three 
hours they advanced upon the works 
and four times were they repulsed with 
heavy slaughter. ‘‘At four o’clock”—we 
quote from the official report of Gen. 
Huger, commanding the department of 
Norfolk—‘‘the enemy deployed in the 
open field and bore down rapidly, but 
the heavy fire of musketry caused them 
to waver and they fied back to the fence. 
Three regiments of the enemy and afield 
piece were in the centre, andthe 9th 
New York regiment on the right. The 
fire was now brisk from one end of the 
line to the other, and the enemy were 
held in check, when just at this moment 
the captain of the artilery was killed 
and his men became panic stricken and 
left the field. Col. Wright succeeded 
in rallying them, getting two pieces and 
afew men in position, and the enemy 
had now adyanced so close that canister 
was fired on them with effect and they 
again fell back. After this the amuni- 
tion in the limber boxes became ex- 
hausted and the artillery left the field. 
The enemy made another assault, but 
the steady fire of the infantry at close 
distance—fifty yards—caused them to 
break in confusion.” Thus ended the 
battle and at night-fall the enemy re- 
treated to the protection of their gun- 


boats. The position was held against 
fearful odds for more than five hours 
and the enemy’s loss in killed, wounded 
and prisoners exceeded the whole force of 
Confederates engaged in the action. 

Ashort time after this Gen. Wright 
engaged in an expedition which more 
| than any feat of arms attested his devo- 
| tion to country, and his willingness to 
brave even an ignominious death while 
in her service. A heavy force of the 
enemy occupied Elizabeth City and it 
became of the utmost importance to the 
Confederate commander to ascertain 
their numbers and intentions. In the 
emergency Gen. Wright and Maj..Lee, 
of the Third Georgia, volunteered to per- 
form this dangerous duty. Leaving the 
Confederate camp late in the afternoon, 
disguised as civilians they eluded the 
| enemy's pickets and entered the town, 
where they were mistaken for citizens. 
They remained there for several hours, 
mixing and coversing freely with the 
Federal soldiery, from whom tbey ob- 
tained the information which was de- 
sired. Late in the night they made 
their way out of the lines—where they 
would have received instant death had 
they been recognized—and rejoined in 
safety the Confederate forces. 

Soon after the affair of South Mills 
he returned to Virginia and was in 
the retreat from the Peninsular be- 
fore the army of McClellan. Some time 
in June, and shortly after the army 
centred near Richmond for the ‘‘ seven 
days’” fights, he received his commis- 
sion as a Brigadier-General in the Con- 
federate army asa reward for his ser- 
vices at South Mills. Hiscommand was 
attached to the division of General 
Huger and participated in the engage- 
ments of Seven Pines, Frasier’s Farm, 
Gaines’ Mill, Malvern Hill and the 
James River Landing. In each of these 
engagements he behaved with his ac- 
customed bravery and rendered the most 
efficient service to the Confederate 
cause, At Malvern Hill his brigade 


made a charge which was complimented 
in the highest terms. His brigade fol- 
lowed the enemy on his retreat into 
Maryland and took part in the second 
battle of Manassas, where his son 
and staff officer, Lieutenant W. A. 
Wright, lost a leg. In the bloody 
contest of Sharpsburg he fought 
gallantly with his brigade, and 
was wounded in two places—in the 
breast and leg—and had his horse shot 
from under him. He was carried from 
the field upon a litter, and, after the 
army reached Virginia, came home ona 
furlough, remaining only long enough 
for his wounds to heal. In November 
he returned to Virginia and was assign- 
ed to Anderson’s Division, A. P. Hill’s 
corps. In the seven or eight days’ 
fighting at Chancellorsville, in May, 
1863, the brigade was actively engaged. 
On the second of May it com- 
menced the: fight on the Plank 
Road, driving the enemy from and 
capturing a line of breastworks. On 
Sunday morning the fight was renewed 
on the left of the Plank Road, and 
Wright’s Brigade, supported by Posey 
and Perry, made the attack. The enemy 
was driven back fo their breastworks, 
out of the first line into the second and 
then out of the second. In this engage- 
ment aportion of the Third Georgia cap- 
tured a Federal regiment (including Co- 
lonel, Lieutenant Colonel, Major, 
and Adjutant) who surrendered with 
guns in their hands. On the day 
following, Anderson’s division and 
Early’s charged the enemy in po- 
sition on the river road (Wright’s 
brigade in advance) and routed them. 
This charge was made under the 
eye of General Lee, who directed the 
movement and complimented the troops 
in the highest manner. In this engage- 
ment General Wright was wounded in 
the knee by apiece of schrapnel. He 
went with the army into Pennsylvania 
during the Summer following, and took 
part in the battle of Gettysburg. Of 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


his conduct there, General Lee, in his 
official report, speaks as follows: 


The enemy occupied a strong position 
with his right upon two commanding 
elevations adjacent to each other—one 
southeast and the other, known as 
Cemetery Hill, immediately south of 
the town which lay at its base. His line 
extended thence upon the high ground 
along the Emmettsburg road, with a 
steep ridge in the rear, which was also 
occupied. This ridge was difficult of 
ascent, particularly the two hills above 
mentioned as forming its northern ex- 
tremity, and a third at the other end 
on which the enemy’s left rested.— 
Numerous stone and rail fences along 
the slope served to afford protection to 
his troops, to impede our adyance. In 
his front the ground was undulating 
and generally open for about three- 
quarters of a mile. Hill’s corps faced 
the west of Cemetery Hill, and extended 
nearly parellel to the Emmettsburg road, 
making an angle with Ewell’s. Pender’s di- 
vision formed his left, Anderson his right, 
Heth’s, under Brigadier-General Petti- 
grew, being in reserve. It was determined 
to make the principal attack upon the 
enemy’s left, and endeavor to gain a 
position from which it was thought that 
our artillery could be brought to bear 
with effect. Longstreet was directed to 
place the divisions of MeLaws and 
Hood on the right of Hill, partly en- 
veloping the enemy’s left, which he was 
to drive in. General Hill was ordered 
to threaten the enemy’s centre to pre- 
vent re-inforcements being drawn to 
either wing, and to co-operate with the 
right division in Longstreet’s attack. 
General Ewell was directed to make a 
simultaneous demonstration upon the 
enemy’s right, to be converted into a 
real attack should opportunity offer. 
About 4 p. m. Longstreet’s batteries 
opened, and soon afterwards Hood’s 
division, on the extreme right, moyed to 
the attack. McLaws followed some- 
what later, four of Anderson’s brigades 
—those of Wilcox, Perry, Wright and 
Posey—supporting him on the left, in 
the ordernamed. The enemy was soon 
driven from his position on the Em- 
mettsburg road to the cover of a ravine 
and a line of stone fences at the foot of 
the ridge in the rear. He was dislodged 
from these after a severe struggle and 
retired up the ridge, leaving a number 
of his batteries in our possession. 
Wilcox’s and Wright’s brigades ad- 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


vanced with great gallantry, breaking, 


successive lines of the enemy’s infantry 
and compelling him to abandon much 
of his artillery. Wilcox reached the 
foot and Wright gained the crest of the 
ridge itself, driving the enemy down 


the opposite side; but having become | 


separated from McLaws, and gone be- 
yond the other two brigades of the 
division, they were attacked in front 
and on both flanks and compelled to re- 
tire, being unable to bring off any of 


the captured artillery. McLaws'’ left 


also fell back, and, it being nearly dark, 
General Longstreet determined to await 
the arrival of General Pickett. 
pieces of artillery, several hundred 
prisoners and two regimental flags were 
taken. 


After the retreat began, Wright’s brig- | 


ade still farther distinguished itself. 


was left to guard Manassas Gap until he 
could arrive. 
attacked by an army corps of the enemy, 
which they held in check until Ewell’s 


Four, 


In this position they were | 


command arrived in safety. General | 
Ewell exclaimed on the field that this | 


brigade had made ‘‘the best fight of the 
war.” Prior to Gettysburg, General 
Wright and staff, while riding in advance 
of the division, entered a little town in 


Maryland and were ambushed by a party | 
in | 


of the enemy’s cavairy—dressed 
butternut suits—under the command of 
Lieutenant Martindale. The General 
and all of his staff escaped except his 
son, Lieutenant Wright, who was cap- 
tured (not being able to ride rapidly on 


account of the loss of his leg at Manassas | 


the year preceeding) and kept at John- 
son’s Island for more than twelve months. 


In the Fall of 1863 General Wright ran | 


measure tending to strengthen the Gene- 
ral Government and maintain the war 
vigorously, and bitterly opposed the at- 
tacks upon the cause made by those who, 
in their zealfor the forms of constitu- 
tional government were, without design 
perhaps, weakening our cause. He sup- 
ported warmly Governor Johnson (who 
was elected) for the Senate against Gen. 
Toombs. Upon the adjournment of the 
Legislature hereturned to the front and 


resumed command of his brigade. In 
the campaigns of the Spring and 
Summer of 1864, beginning at the 


Wilderness and ending in front of Pe- 


| tersburg, General Wright behaved, with 


his usual conspicuous gallantry, and in 


| one brilliant movement, executed by him 
General Ewell having been detained in| 
the valley, General Wright’s command 


in front of Petersburg, he stormed and 
captured a line of the enemy’s entrench- 
ments, turned and doubled up the flank 
of one of their army corps, and captured 
more prisoners than there were men in 
his brigade. 

At the close of this campaign a 
serious illness compelled him to re- 
turn to Georgia, and he was placed 
in command of the post of Augusta. In 
the Fall of 1864 President Davis sent 
him his commission as a Major General, 
and he was assigned to the command of 
a division in Savannah, under Lieutenant 
General Hardee. He was present at the 
siege of and retreat from Savannah, and 
then followed Gen. Joseph E. Johnston 
into North Carolina, where the sur- 
render took’place. He returned to Au- 
gusta cnly in time to assist in saving 
the city from sack and destruction. The 
town was filled with needy paroled sol- 
diers on their way home, who, exasper- 


for the State Senate and was elected. | ated by recent privations, determined to 


In November of that year he took his 
seat in Milledgeville and was a candi- 
date for President of the Senate. His 
opponent was Mr. Chambers, of Colum- 
bus, and after seventeen successive bal- 
lots—there being a tie on every ballot— 
General Wright was elected. As a Sena- 
tor he was an ardent advocate of every 


gut the stores of the city and help them- 
selves to their contents. A raid was 
made, several stores were broken open 
and plundered, and the ruin of the town 
seemed certain, when General Wright 
and a few resolute men interposed. He 
took a position in front of the mob, 
calling upon the soldiers of Bob 


10 


el ee 
TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


Lee to rally to his support, and im- 
plored the crowd to hear him; and 
perhaps the best and most effective 
speech of his life was the one delivered 
from the top of a tree-box on Broad 
street to the mob of maddened soldiers 
and infuriated women which surged be- 
neath. It hadits effect. The mob hesi- 
tated, then listened, then reflected, and 
the city was saved. 

When warcameit found him ina lucra- 
tive practice and easy circumstances. 
When it had passed, it left him with 
his practice destroyed, himself im- 
poverished—his property all swept 
away except the home in which he 
lived. For -ix months he worked as he 
had done in early life, laboring with his 
own hands, and earning a liying for his 
family. In the beginning of 1866 he re- 
opened his law office in Augusta, and 
renewed his copartnership with Judge 
Gibson, which lasted until the lat- 
ter went upon the bench. In March, 
1866, Henry Moore, Esq., purchased 
the CaRoNnIcnbE AND SENTINEL, and his 
friend, General Wright, became one of 
the editors of the paper. Through the 
mismanagement of the former owner, 


the paper had lost its old standing, and | 


its circulation had been reduced to 
almost nothing. General Wright was 
widely known, had numerous army 
friends scattered over the State, was per- 
sonally popular, attended the Courts of 
the Circuit, and mixed with the people. 
Subscribers were rapidly procured, and 
with subscribers came other business, 
until the enterprise stood upon a firm 
and flourishing footing. The CaronicuE 
AND SENTINEL and its editors defended 
the cause of the Southern people prompt- 
ly, and with ardor. 
times of. reconstruction and military 
rule—when public men were fright- 
ened and party leaders dumb—the 
CHRONICLE never ceased to denounce 
despots and despotisms, to protest 
against the usurpations of a _ revo- 


lutionary Congress, or to expose and | that 


In the troublous |} 


| gained 


hold up to public indignation and con- 
tempt the miserable crew of bummers, 
scalawags and carpet-baggers, and other 
political vermin, who overran Georgia 
and the South. This journal made it- 
self hated and feared; but it could 
neither be bribed nor intimidated ; and 
its thunders never ceased while Right 
lay prostrate and Wrong occupied the 
place of power. In every movement 
against corruption the CHRONICLE was 
a leader, and continue} its warfare 
until Georgia was rid of the foul ineu- 
bus of Radicalism which had oppressed 
her, and stood forth before the world, 
disenthralled. 

In January, 1871, General Wright 
was a candidate for United States 
Senator in the Democratic Legislative 
caucus, together with Hon. H. V. M. 
Miller, Gen. P. B. M. Young, Hon. T. 
M. Norwood and others. After an ex- 
citing contest, which was finally narrow- 
ed to himself and Mr. Norwood, the 
latter received the nomination and was 
electel. In the Summer of 1872 Gen- 
eral Wright was sent to the State Con- 
vention of the Democracy, and by the 
latter body elected a delegate from the 
State at Large to the Baltimore Conyen- 
tion. There he favored the nominees, 
but voted against the platform of the 
Cincinnati movement. In the State 
Convention of August, he was Chariman 
of the Committee on Resolutions, and 
reported the platform upon which the 
Democracy went into the campaign, and 
such a brilliant victory in 
October. When the Congressional Con- 
vention met in this city he received 
the nomination for Congress from 
the Eighth District. He had the 
hardest race in the State before him, 
having not only to encounter the Repub- 
lican nominee, Mr. P. Clayton, but also 
Gen. Toombs’ son-in-law, Gen. DuBose, 


who ran as a “Straight-out.” When 
Gen. DuBose entered the field, it 
was believed by almost every one 


he would take away enough 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


un 


white votes to secure the election | peals, full of close reasoning and con- 


of Clayton. General Wright never 
lost faith in the justice of his 
cause or felt alarm for the result. 
But while relying much upon his cause 
he relied equally upon himself, and at 
once commenced an active, a protracted 
and an exhaustive canvass. He threw 
his whole soul into the contest, ‘‘stump- 
ing” every county in the District, speak- 
ing every day with all his eloquence in 
behalf of the Democratic and Liberal | 
party, and making hundreds of friends 
wherever he went. On election day his | 
expectations were realized. Despite the | 
bitter opposition of political opponents 
and the malicious warfare of personal 
enemies, he defeated his two antagonists 
in every county in the District but one, 
beat them both put together in most of 
them, aud was elected by nearly 
three thousand five hundred majority. 
Four weeks ago he was confined to his 
house but not his bed, by a slight in- 
disposition. A week before his death 
his illness assumed aserious form. On 
last Thursday he grew rapidly worse, 
and on Saturday morning the sol- 
dier and the patriot sank peacefully 
and calmly into that long, last sleep, 
which knows no waking, while the wife | 
and children so dear to his heart knelt ! 
around the couch of death and prayed | 
to the God of Heaven to receive the | 
soul of him they so fondly loved. 

Such is a brief and necessarily imper- 
fect outline of the life of General 
Wright. During his career he filled 
many important positions, and the fact 
that he achieved distinction in all of 
them is certainly evidence of the man’s 
great genius and wonderful abilities. 
As a lawyer he had few peers at the bar. 
His knowledge of the law was deep and 
profound, while the quickness of his 
mind was something really wonderful. 
He entered into a case with his whole 


soul, and made his client’s cause his 
own. His speeches in the Court House 
were eloquent, earnest and effective ap+ 


vineing logic. As an editor, he had the 
rare gift of being able to write for the 
people. His articles were terse and to 
the point, and carried conviction by the 
sincerity which pervaded them. No 
man could write more strongly—no 
man could write more effectively. Asa 
soldier the.e was not his superivr among 
the civilians who eatered the army. He 
early won the confidence of his men, and 
never forfeited it. They did not hesitate 
to follow, because they knew he did not 
fear to 1ead. Cool and intrepid, he 
never missed seeing his opportunity, 
and never failed to improve it. He was 
strict without being tyrannical, firm 


| without being harsh, resolute without 


being obstinate. In private life he was 
an exemplar of all the domestic virtues. 
To the world he often appeared reserved 
and formal, but his friends and his fam- 
ily knew that under a seemingly cold 


| exterior there beat a warm heart, full of 


tenderness and love. Where he loved, 
he loved deeply and confided implicitly. 
There was nothing which he would not 
do to promote the welfare and secure 
the happiness of those who had his af- 
fection, no error which he would not 
forget, no fault which he would not for- 
give. He had his imperfections, but the 
perfect man has not lived. He had his 
passions and his prejudices, too, and 
the frailties of human nature, for he was 
but mortal. But he had virtues enough 
to atone for them all. His faulis, 
like spots upon the sun, which make 
its brightness greater, served only to 
lend additional lustre to the dazzling 
splendor of his fame. Clad in the livery 
of liberty, in the livery of a cause which 
he loved better than life itself—for on a 
hundred battle fields he offered his life 
in its behalf—he sleeps in the quiet city 
of the dead. Cut downin his prime— 
in the very noon-tide of his life—he yet 
died with honors thick upon him; died 
after drinkiug deeper of the cup of fame 
than men who lived to twice his years; 


12 


we a . 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


died after many noble deeds and glori- 
ous sacrifices; died having the love and 
the respect of all good men; died leav- 
ing his name as a part of the history of 
his country. And yet he is not dead ! 


He has out-soared the shadow of our night; 
Envy and hate and calumny and pain, 

And that unrest. which men miscall delight, 
Shall trouble not, shall torture not again. 
From the contagion of the world’s slow stain 
He is secure. And now shall never mourn 
A heart grown cold, a head grown gray in vain, 

Nor when the Spirit’s self has ceased to burn 
With sparkless ashes load an unlamented urn. 


OBSEQUIES OF GENERAL A. R. WRIGHT. 


In less than an hour after the spirit of 
General Wright had taken its flight for 
the land 


‘*Beyond the river,” 
The sad intelligence had reached every 
circle in this city, and the uniform ex- 
clamation was: What a loss to his fam- 
ily—this community, and State! 

The morning papers were eagerly 
sought in order to ascertain the hour 
appointed for the funeral services—12:30, 
p.m. By high noon vast crowds began 
to wend their way te the late residence 
of the deceased. 

Numbers, both white and colored, 
passed solemnly around the remains of 
the departed cbieftain and statesman, 
looking for the last time here, in grief 
and in sympathy, upon the face which, 
in life, never turned from duty, and in 
the icy embrace of death bore the im- 
press of resignation. 

At about 1 o’clock, p. m., the proces- 
sion haying been formed on McIntosh 
street, moved off in the following order : 

Sabre Club, Lieut. John W. Clark, 
commanding. 

City Police, Chief J. A. Christian, 
commanding. 

Oglethorpe Infantry, Capt. W. Daniel, 
commanding. 

Confederate soldiers, from various 
commands, under Maj. 8S. H. Crump. 

Clinch Rifles, Lieut. S. H. Rowland, 
commanding. 

Trish Volunteers, Capt. William Mul- 
herin, commanding. 


Fire Department, under command of 
Assistant Chief J. J. Moore. 

The whole under the command of 
Maj. J. V. H. Allen, with Major 8. H. 
Crump as Aid, furnishing the military 
escort. 

Webb and Social Lodges of Masons, 

Carriage with the officiating clergy- 
man, Rev. W. H. Clark, Rector of St, 
Paul’s Church. 

The hearse with the remains of the 
deceased. 

Carriages with pall bearers—Hon. J. 
T. Shewmake, General Kershaw, Hon. 
R. H. May, Henry Moore, Esq., Major 
J. B. Cumming, Colonel Claiborne 
Snead, J. C. C. Black, Hsq., Alex. Philip, 
Esq., Captain J. K. Evans, and Patrick 
Walsh, Esq. 

Carriages with family and relatives of 
the deceased. 


Members of the Bar of Richmond 
county. 


City Council of Augusta. 

Citizens generally. 

Carriages. 

At every crossing on the dolorous 
way to the City of the Dead crowds of 
white and colored persons assembled to 
pay mute respect to one who had fear- 
lessly and faithfully illustrated Georgia 
wherever and whenever duty called. 

The Sabbath, in its impressive qui- 
etude, appeared a fitting day for the 
burial of our lamented fellow-citizen. 
The sun shone out in all his splendor, 
but the gloom which the General’s death 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


13 


caused seemed to rob his rays of their) concluded the impressive services com- 


effulgence. 

Among the distinguished citizens 
present to pay the last sad tribute to the 
memory of the deceased, were Gov. 
Chas. J. Jenkins, Bishop Quintard, of 
Tennessee, Gov. Herschel V. Johnson, 
Gen. Toombs, Gen. Kershaw, of South 
Carolina, W. Hope Hull, Esq., Judge 
Gould, Hon. H. W. Hillard, James 
Gardner, Esq., Judge Gibson, Judge 
Hook, Judge Twiggs, and others whose 
names we do not now recall, 

At the grave, the Rev. W. H. Clarke 


menced at the house. Then the Masonic 
Brotherhood performed the last rites of 
that noble organization, of which the 
deceased wasan honored member. These 
services were, in a melancholy sense, 
deeply interesting, and were, in spirit at 
least, feelingly participated in by the 
multitude present. 

The whole heart of our community 
goes out in the most profound sorrow 
for the dead, and in the most earnest 
sympathy for the living who are left to 
mourn a husband, father and friend. 


IN MEM 


It is with a sad and sorrowful heart 
that we publish from our exchanges, 
the following tributes to our late asso- 
ciate, General A. R. Wright. Cut off 
in the midst of his usefulness, in the 
prime of his intellectual manhood, with 
a brilliant career just opening before 
him, his death is a calamity to this 
community—to this State that he has 
loved and honored so much—an irrepa- 
rable loss to his stricken family, and 
a crushing blow to his associates in this 
journal : 

[From the Constitutionalist.] 
DEATH OF GEN. AMBROSE R. WRIGHT. 

This event has produced a deeply sad- 
dening effect upon this community.— 
Throughout Georgia, and among all the 
brave soldiers who followed his gallant 
lead, and served under the Confederate 
flag with him on many of the most hotly 
contested fields of the war, the an- 
nouncement of Gen. Wright’s death will 
be received with sorrowful emotions.— 
Early enlisted in the war as a private in 
the Confederate Light Guards, Gen. 
Wright was soon elected Colonel of his 
regiment, the Third Georgia, and by his 
gallantry, military talents and fidelity to 
duty, was first promoted Brigadier Gen- 


ORIAM. 


eral, then Major General in the service- 
He served on many sanguinary fields, 
and was severely wounded in one of the 
bloodiest battles of the war. Disabled 
by his wounds, Gen. Wright returned 
home, and was elected to the State Sen- 
ate, and President of the Senate, serv- 
ing one term in that high office. At the 
close of the war he became a resident of 
Augusta, where he resumed and con- 
tinued in the active practice of his pro- 
fession until his last illness. Of distin- 
guished legal abilities and fine oratori- 
cal powers, he maintained a high rank 
at the bar, and achieved marked success 
as a lawyer. 

Superadded to his professional labors, 
he filled, with much talent, tact and 
good judgment, the responsible position 
of Editor-in-Chief of the Augusta CHRont- 
oLE & SENTINEL, one of the foremost 
dailies of the South. He had but re- 
cently completed an arduous and trium- 
phant canvass as Democractic candidate 
for Congress in the Eighth Congres- 
sional District, during which he labor- 
ed incessantly, and made brilliant and 
effective speeces in every county in the 
District. His election in November by 
a very decisive majority was a splendid 
tribute to his abilities, and proof of 
public confidence in his fitness for the 
position. 


14 


Gen. Wright was a native of Jefferson 
county, Ga., where he commenced his 
professional career and became early 
distinguished by his oratory, his legal 
acumen, and clo-e attention to profes- 
sional business. He moved to Rich- 
mond county abont fourteen years ago, 
and has been dnring that period one of 
our most active and influential citizens. 

Thus has fallen, in the meridian of a 
conspicuous career, one who seemed, in 
all human calculation, destined to a 
brilliant and prosperous future. Had 
Providence spared him awhile longer to 
his constituents and his State, he would 
have marked his name yet higher in the 
role of the distinguished men of Geor- 
gia. He would have taken at once 
high rank in the National Councils, and 
won for himself a name of which his 
family, his friends, and the people of 
Georgia would have been proud. 

Alas ! curbed in his high career, he is 
cut down by remorseless disease. After 
days of severe suffering, he has sunk to 
rest. No clash ofarms—uno political tur- 
moil disturbs him now. 

“« After life’s fitful fever he sleeps well.” 

A long train of sorrowing friends will 
attend the last sad obsequies, and 
mingle their sympathies in this great 
public loss, and this sad bereavement 
to his stricken family. 


[From the Savannah Republican.] 
GEN. AMBROSE RANSOM WRIGHT. 


Our telegraphic dispatch announces 
the death of this distinguished journalist 
and gallant soldier. One by one the old 
landmarks that point our eyes to the 
contemplation of the past glories of our 
State are fading, and new forms arise 
and give a different air and coloring to 
the pile. And now, at one fell stroke, 
one of the fairest statues that ornamen- 
ted the dome of our nobility has been 
prostrated—never to be restored. 

Gen. Wright was a lawyer by profes- 
sion, and he had won no scanty laurels 
at the bar. At the call of his State, he 
led forth to battle the boys of the3d 
Georgia Regiment. A strict discipli- 
narian, a prompt, efficient and trusted 
leader, he was promoted to the rank of 
Brigadier General in the army of North- 
ern Virginia. He passed through all the 
important battles fought in Northern 
Virginia, and was again, in the Winter 
of 1863-’64, elevated in rank, becoming 
a Major General. 

As an officer he was strict, yet popular 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


on the whole, and his men would follow 
none sooner than him, their leader. 

Since the war the General has been 
the able editor of the Augusta CHRont- 
cLE & Sentinen. Placed thus at the 
head of a leading journal, he exercised 
an influence in polities and took a lead- 
ing part in their discussion. Recently 
elected to Congress in place of Mr. Du- 
Bose, and in despite of the opposition 
of the ‘‘ Straight-out ticket” and a Re- 
publican nominee, he is taken away just 
when fortune seemed to have marked 
him for ‘‘ high empire.” 

General Wright’s death will prove a 
great loss to his constituents and the 
State ; a greater loss to his paper, and a 
loss to his family that cannot be meas- 
ured in words. With these, we, too, 
lament his untimely fall. 


[From the Atlanta Constitution.] 
GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


The death of this veryable and promi- 
nent Georgian will be a large loss to the 
State at this juncture. His death was 
very unexpected. He was in the prime 
of his vigorous and intellectual man- 
hood, and had the promise of a long, 
and useful, and brilliant career. We 
remember him buta few weeks back in 
the most lusty health, and robus, men- 
tal vigor. 

He has been prominent in Georgia 
politics for many years. Before the war 
he had taken part in the political con- 
tests of that time, and had made a State 
reputation as one of the boldest, a blest 
and most effective stump speakers. As 
“‘“Ranse Wright” he was known on 
every hustings, and made himself a 
political power. 

He was a lawyer in large and success- 
ful practice, and exhibited the same 
ability, zeal, and eloquence as an advyo- 
cate that he did as a politician. 

Since the war he was the chief editor 
of that popular and powerful old journal, 
the Augusta CHRONICLE AND SENTINEL, 
and he wielded a pen as ready and forci- 
ble as he was eloquent as a speaker. 

In the late contest he was elected from 
his district to Congress under cireum- 
stances peculiarly flattering, and we had 
looked to his advent in the National 
Councils with a very large degree of ex- 
pectation. He would have made his 
mark there, and at this time we regard- 
ed his presence in Congress as peculiar- 
ly fortunate. He had the ability, the 
nerve, and experience to have revived 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


the old days, when Georgia had her best 
men at Washington. 

We have not at hand the particulars 
of his life, but he has been for years 
representing his county in State Conven- 
tions. He was a delégate at large to the 
Baltimore Convention and member from 
Georgia on the National Democratic Ex- 
ecutive Committee. 

As a soldier he illustrated Georgia in 
the late war. Herose to be Brigadier 
General, and proved himself as dashing 
and patriotic in battle as in civil life. 

He was married twice. He leaves a 
lovely wifeand several children to mourn 
his lors. 

The writer knew General Wright well, 
and had a high estimate of his qualities. 
General Wright was a decided character. 
His nature was aggressive in its opera- 
tions. He was strikingly fearless, and 
had abilities to back his courage. 

We regard him asa large loss to Geor- 
gia, and profoundly regret his sad and 
sudden decease. 


[From the Savannah Advertiser. ] 
DEATH OF GENERAL A. R. WRIGHT. 

A private telegram received in our city 
on yesterday conveyed the sad and 
startling intelligence of the death of 
General A. R. Wright, editor of the Au- 
gusta CoronicLe & SentTineL, and mem- 
ber of Congress elect from the Eighth 
District. Mention had been made of his 
indisposition in such a shape as to quiet 
any apprehensions of his death. 

The data is not before us from which 
to frame a sketch of the life of General 
Wright. He was well known in Georgia, 
so well known that the announcement of 
his death will be regarded by most of 
those who read it as a public calamity. 
Previous to the war General Wright had 
achieved honorable political distinction. 
His party never had strength enough to 
elect him to the honors he contested for, 
but in that old and honored party he 
was an acknowledged and honored leader. 
We can afford to say this, for we were 
never a member of it. 

Early in the late war General Wright 
assumed a prominent position, By hard 
service and gallant conduct, he won 
quick promotion. He returned to his 

‘home at its close with many names added 
to his list of friends that had not graced 
it before. 

Engaging in the practice of law, he 
found time to take an active and useful 
part in all of the party contests in which 
the South has beenengaged, and finally, 


15 


after a most able and gallant canvass, 
the long coveted honor of a seat, in 
Congress was put within his reach. 

With genuine sadness we record the 
fact that death has again mocked the 
vanity of human ambition. 

General Wright was a ready and im- 
pressive orator, a strong and sensible 
writer, and an honorable gentleman, 
whose impulses and exuberance of 
thought, speech and manner, were set 
down to disadvantage against his sound 
sense and practical qualities. Georgia 
has lost a true and loyal son, the bara 
brilliant advocate, the press a tower of 
strength. 

[From the Savannah Morning News.] 


DEATH OF GEN, A. R. WRIGHT. 


The telegraphic announcement of the 
death of General Ambrose Ransom 
Wright, of Augusta, was a severe shock 
to the many friends of this distinguished 
gentleman. The occurrence, though sud- 
den, was not altogether unlooked for. 
For the past three weeks Gen. Wright 
has been prostrated by a nervous fever, 
and, while the symptoms were serious, 
it was hoped that his fine constitution 
would bring him safely through the 
crisis. 

It is no easy task for even the hand of 
friendship to pay just tribute to the 
newly-dead; and here, almost upon the 
borders of the grave of one of Georgia’s 
truest and worthiest sons, we have not 
heart to attempt it. General Wright’s 
career since 1860 is too well known to 
require rehearsal, His intellectual qual- 
ities were of a very high order, and 
with great versatility of mind he com- 
bined unusual eneigy and strength of 
character. He was a true patriot, and 
illustrated his love for his State and 
people in the most conspicuous manner 
as an orator, soldier and editor. 

In more than one respect the death of 
General Wright is untimely. His seat 
in the next Congress, from the Eighth 
District, is made vacant, and it will be 
no easy matter for his constituents to 
find a man who will represent them 
more unselfishly and devotedly. 

To his family and to our brethren of 
the CHRONICLE AND SENTINEL we extend 
a condolence which, if unavailing, is 
none the less sincere. pA 


[From the Macon Telegraph and Messenger. ] 
DEATH OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT, 


We were profoundly shocked and 
grieved yesterday to hear of this sad 


16 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


event, which happened at Augusta yester-| of high intellectual attainments and 


day morning. We had heard that Gen. 
W. was ill, but no intimation that his 
illness was of a serious nature had ever 
reached us. It seems, however, that his 
health has not been good for some time, 
and that his last illness commenced some 
three weeks since. 

Gen. Wright was born, we believe, in 
Jefferson county, and had reached the 
age of 47, and, for many years, had been 
prominently before the people of Geor- 
gia as lawyer and politician, and more 
latterly as editor of the CHRONICLE AND 
Sentinez. Nature had been more than 
ordinarily gracious to him in her gifts, 
and before a jury, on the stump, or in 
the editorial chair he was very strong. 
Whatever he did was done with all the 
fervor of anintense nature and an indomi- 
table will. He was astern figher, whethter 
in field or forum, and though he dealt 
hard blows and aroused many antagon- 
isms, he never struck from behind or 
under cover. His career as a Confed- 
erate officer was exceptionally brilliant, 
and while time endures the part played 
by ‘‘ Wright’s Brigade” in the glorious 
drama that closed at Appamattox will 
live among the brighest pages of Geor- 
gia history. During the last canvass he 
was the candidate of the Democracy of 
his District for Congress, and after a 
most exciting canvass was triumphantly 
elected over two competitors, and would 
have taken his seat on the 4th of March 
in the Forty-third Congress. 


But we leave to others more able than | 


ourselves the sad duty of paying a fit- 
ting tribute to his memory. We can 
only say that by his death Georgia has 
lost as true and devoted a son as ever 
drew a blade in her defense. What 
higher eulogy could be pronounced ? 


[From the Charleston News.] 
DEATH OF GENERAL A. R. WRIGHT. 


It gives us much sorrow to announce 
the death of General A. R. Wright, one 
of the editors of the Augusta CHRONI- 
CLE AND SENTINEL and member elect 
from the Highth Congressional District 
of Georgia. Well may the community 
in which helived, and which he adorned, 
deplore his untimely loss. Well may 
his sorrowing associates say of him that 
he was a brave soldier, an able jurist, a 
matchless orator. General Wright had 
a host of warm personal friends in 
Augusta, and the respect and esteem of 
the entire community. He was a man 


sterling character, and we extend our 
earnest sympathies to those to whom his 
death has wrought the keenest bereave- 
ment. 


[From the Wilmington (N. ©.) Journal.] 
GENERAL A. R. WRIGHT. 


It is with profound sorrow that we re- 
cord the death of General Ambrose Ran- 
som Wright, of Augusta. 

General Wright was one of Georgia’s 
most distinguished sons. As an officer 
of the Confederate army, as a member 
of the bar, in the editorial sanctum, 
and in the social circle, he was alike 
distinguished and honored. A man of 
great personal magnetism, he made 
friends in every sphere of life. 

We had formed for him a warm per- 
sonal attachment. A friendship begun 
during an association in the army, had 
been cemented by the ties of the edi- 
torial sanctum. Asa friend and as an 
editor we sincerely mourn his loss. 

To his bereaved family and to his 
associates upon the staff of the Curont- 
CLE AND SENTINEL, we extend our most 
heartfelt sympathies. His death at this 
time, just as he was about to enter up- 
on his duties as a member of Congress, 
is a loss not only to Georgia, but to the 
whole South. 


[From the Rome Commercial. 
GEN. A. R. WRIGHT DEAD, 


This distinguished and noble son of 
Georgia died yesterday morning, at his 
residence in Augusta, as will be seen in 
our telegraph columns. The people of 
Georgia will deeply feel this untimely 
and unexpected loss. Gen. Wright was 
one of the few men upon whom a State 
could rely in time of public calamity. 
He was a true, a fearless and a faithful 
man to all his public trusts. Asa sol- 
dier, as an editor, as a statesman, he 
was marked for his nerve, his judgment 
and his sagacity. As an orator, he was 
bold, brilliant and captivating. He 
made no failure in anything he under- 
took, and but few men haye shown such 
versatility of genius, such aptitude for 
the noblest callings of life. Wecan but 
express our grief for this sad dispensa- 
tion, and tender to his family our heart- 
felt sympathy in their sad bereavement. 
The press of Georgia has lost one of its 
brighest ornaments, and the State a rep- 
resentative who would have nobly de- 
fended her honor and added new laurels 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


17 


to her grand old history. May his rest 
be peaceful. 


[From the Charlotte (N. C.) Observer.] 
DEATH LOVES A SHINING MARE. 

General Ambrose Ransom Wright, of 
Georgia, died on Saturday, after a brief 
illness, at the age of forty-seven. He 
was in the prime and vigor of manhood, 
and his unlooked for death is a Heavy 
blow to the people of Augusta and the 
Eighth District of Georgia, from which 
he was so recently elected to Congress. 

His presence in Congress was looked 
forward to with pride, with joy and with 
hope. Eloquent, courageous and vigor- 
ous in intellect, he would have made his 
vcice heard and his intellect felt in the 
halls of Congress, where brave and true 
representatives of the South are so 
much veeded. He was one of the most 
gallant among the officers of the Con- 
federate army, and since the war has 
earned a brilliant reputation as a politi- 
cal writer, asa lawyer and as an orator. 
He has, during the dark and evil days 
upon which we have fallen, been un- 
wavering in his devotion to the South. 
‘An upright man, an honest citizen, a 
true Georgian, a true Christian, a great 
mind,” his loss will be felt throughout 
the Southern States. 


{From the Columbia Carolinian.] 
DEATH OF GENERAL A. R. WRIGHT. 


General A. R. Wright, the talented 
editor of the Augusta CHRONICLE AND 
SENTINEL, and member elect of the 
United States Congress from the Highth 
Georgia District, died at his home in 
Augusta on Saturday. 

Gen. Wright was a lawyer of marked 
ability, and had risen to a high position 
in his profession. At the commence- 
ment of the war he enlisted as a private 
in the Third Georgia regiment and was 
soon promoted to the Coloneley of the 
regiment. For gallant and meritorious 
services he was soon promoted to a 
Brigadier and then to a Major General. 
He commanded his troops in some of the 
most hotly contested battles of the war, 
and by his coolness and intrepidity did 
much to gain the victories or to smooth 
over the reverses with which our arms 
met. ' 

As a citizen he commanded the respect 
and esteem of all who knew him, and it 
is not in Georgia alone he is known, but 
throughout our whole country the gal- 
lant General and the talented and cour- 
teous editor was known and respected. 


[From the Athens Watchman.] 
DEATH OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT, 


Gen. Ambrose Ransom Wright died in 
Augusta on Saturday morning last. This 
announcement willbe received with re- 
gret by all our readers. We knew Gen. 
Wright long—knew him well and es- 
teemed him highly, 'as, indeed, did all who 
knew him. He had made his mark in 
military, as well as civil service. En- 
tering the ranks as a private, at the com- 
mencement of the war, he had reached 
the high position of Major General be- 
fore its close. Brilliant as was his 
military career, he was perhaps more 
distinguished as a civilian, At an early 
period of his career he reached a com- 
manding eminence as a lawyer, while as 
a politician and orator his fame was 
wide-spread. More recently he had dis- 
tinguished himself as one of the ablest 
editors in the State—having held, since 
the war, the position of editor-in-chief 
of the Augusta CHRONICLE AND SENTINEL, 
one of the oldest and ablest Southern 
dailies. 

At the late election he had been 
chosen a Representative in Congress by 
the people of the Highth District, un- 
der the most flattering circumstances, 
and had his life been spared, we doubt 
not he would have ‘“ illustrated Geor- 
gia” in the U. S. House of Representa- 
tives in a manner that would have 
caused all Georgians to feel proud of 
their champion. 

Having been wounded during the war, 
and for atime disabled from military 
service, he was elected a member of the 
State Senate and-chosen President of 
that body—which position he filled with 
distinguished ability. 

He served frequently as member of 
District, State and National Conven- 
tions. We remember he was 2 member 
of the Philadelphia Conveution of 1866 
and of the late Baltimore Convention. 
At the time of his death he was a mem- 
ber of the National Democratic Execu- 
tive Committee, and previously served 
several years on the State Executive 
Committee. : 

Gen. Wright was cut down in the 
prime of his usefulness, and his career 
serves as an illustration of the truth that 


“The paths of glory lead but to the grave.”\ 


In common with the people of Geor- 
gia, we deeply mourn and lament the 
loss of one of her noblest sons. 


18 


[From the Americus Republican. ] 
DEATH OF GENERAL A. R WRIGHT, 


The death of this very able and promi- 
nent son of Georgia is as unexpected as 
it is sad. We had noticed the account 
of his illvess, but from our knowledge 
of his robust health and powerfui con- 
stitution, together with his prime of 
manhood, we were shocked and sur- 
prised to hear that the sickness had 
terminated fatally. His death at this 
particular time is a great loss to the 
State. Having just been elected to Con- 
gress over two competitors by a most 
flattering majority, we were anxious to 
see him take his seat, and maintain the 
dignity and spirit of the State with that 
fearlessness in the councils of the na- 
tion that had always marked and char- 
acterized his career on the hustings and 
in the forum. 

He entered the service of the Confed- 
erate States asa private, but was elected 
to the Coloneley of the Third Georgia 
Regiment on the final organization of 
that command. In that capacity he 
served during the first year of the war, 
until he was promoted to the rank of 
Brigadier General. He was then as- 
signed to the command of a brigade, 
which, for acts of gallantry, unflinching 
courage and bold and dashing charges, 
was not surpassed in the Army of North- 
ern Virginia. The reputation that this 
command sustained, as fighting ma- 
terial, was owing, to a great extent, to 
the bold, fearless and aggressive spirit 
he inspired his troops with by his own 
dashing and determined character. 

He had filled some position of trust 
and importance in his Congressional 
District for over twenty years. Being 
only forty-seven years of age at the time 
of his death, he entered his political 
career early in life, and always managed 
to sustain himself as a debater and par- 
liamentarian with credit and honor. 

As a stump orator, he had madea 
reputation of being one of the boldest, 
ablest and most effective speakers in the 
State ; as a lawyer, his rank was among 
the first ; as a writer and editor, he 
wielded a pen strong, pungent, and, at 
times, caustic. 

His death is a public calamity, and 

wesincerely and deeply regret the loss. 


/ [From the Fairfield (S. C.) Herald.] 
DEATH OF A DISTINGUISHED MAN. 


Sunday’s dispatches contain the sad 
announcement of the death of General 
A. R. Wright, of Augusta, Ga., one of 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


‘ 


the editots of the CHronicLE AND SEN- 
TINEL, and a member elect of the 43d 
Congress from the Eighth District of 
Georgia. General Wright was widel 
known throughout the South as a bril- 
liant writer, a fearless soldier, and an - 
able lawyer and politician, and the news 
of his untimely demise will be heard 
with profound regret in every locality 
where his fame had reached. Georgia 
has lost a son of whom she might well 
be proud, and the South one of her most 
devoted defenders. 'The Southern press, 
too, has seen one of its brightest stars 
set forever upon earth. 

Peace tohis ashes! 

[From the Union and Recorder.] 
DEATH OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 

On last Saturday the report reached 
our city thatGen. Wright was dead, but 
as we could not trace the report to its 
source, we hoped it would prove incor- 
rect, but on Monday the report was con- 
firmed. Gen. Wright has for many - 
years been a prominent man in Georgia. 
As a lawyer and politician, an editor and 
a soldier, he ranked high. But a short 
time before his death he was elected 
Congress from the Eighth Congressiona 
District, and had he lived to have taken 
his seat in Congress he would no doubt 
have been one of the boldest defenders 
of Georgia in that body. All who served 
with him in the Confederate army give 
him the credit of being a brave soldier. 

[From the New York Herald.] 
AMBROSE R. WRIGHT. 

By telegram from Augusta, Ga., in- 
der date of yesterday, we were informed 
last night of the occurrence of the death 
of General Ambrose Ransom Wright, 
one of the editors of the CaRoNICLE AND 
SENTINEL newspaper and member elect 
to Congress from the Eighth District of 
Georgia. 

General Wright expired at his resi- 
dence, in Augusta, at an early hour in 
the forenoon. He was carried off by 
general debility, resulting from an at- 
tack of nervous fever, which endured 
upon him, with more or less severity, 
during a period of three weeks. He 
was an exceedingly popular man, and,to 
some - extent, a representative Georgian 
of rare abilities. His death causes very 
profound grief and is mourned through- 
out the State asa public calamity, for 
the reason that he was distinguished 
alike by his military record, his legal 
attainments, political ability and fine 
social amenities. General Wright was 
forty-seven years of age. 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


19 


[From the Savannah Republican,] 
‘- a. R. WRIGHT IS DEAD.” 
How few the words, and how rapid 


_ the flight over the telegraph line ! 


And yet these few words announce to 
the world that a great heart has ceased 
to beat, and the light of an intellect lost 
to us forever. 

Upon no one in Georgia at this crisis 
were the eyes of her people resting 
more hopefully than upon the distin- 
guished dead. 

But, we thank God, he well knew be- 
fore he died how great the admiration 
and respect of the people of the State 
were for her chivalrous soldier and bril- 
liant statesman. ’ 

He lies in his grave, but he is wrapt 
in the love of the people of his District 
for his winding sheet—a people second 
to uone in moral and intellectual quali- 
ties. 

No monarch ever lay in more solemn 
state than Georgia’s noble son. 

The jewels that glittered on his coffin 
lid were the tears of a bereaved people. 

Linton Stephens is gone, and A. R. 
Wright is dead ! 

How heavily has the hand of God 
rested upon us this year. But let us 
say with the old Patriarch, humbly and 
reverently, ‘If I am bereaved, I am be- 
reaved.” Unless Thee teach us charity 
and love for the living, hew unavailing 
are these bitter lessons. 

The jewels are falling one by one from 
our crown. True, Time may replace 
them with others as bright, but they are 
not the ones we have so long watched 
and loved. / 


Some of our time honored statesmen 
now 


“Walk sad and thoughtful on the melancholy 


shore 
Of that deep ocean we must sail so soon ;” 


And mindful of these sudden, bitter 
partings, let us touch even their frailties 
and errors with loving and reverent 
hands. And, if in the strife of conflict- 
ing opinions we by chance wound them, 
let hasten to make atonement while 
words of excuse may fall on living ears. 
In the namé of the people of Glynn 
county, who loved and honored General 
Wright, I humbly lay this tribute on his 
grave. “GLYNN.” 


Brunswick, December 25, 1872. 


[From the Farmer and Gardener.] 
GEN, A. R. WRIGHT. 


It is with no ordinary sorrow that we 
announce to our readers the death of 
General A. R. Wright. Passing away 
from earth on the morning of the 21st 
instant, he has left behind him a name 
which shall be remembered when he has 
returned to dust, and a fame which shall 
live forever upon the altars of Constitu- 
tional Government. A man of strong 
convictions, he did whatever his hand 
found to do with a will. Of intense 
feeling, he most earnestly defended the 
rights of the South whenever and 
wherever they were assailed, and most 
royally did he perform the task. Ear- 
nestly desirous of the prosperity of his 
section, he gave the entire weight of his 
name and influence to the cause of Ag- 
riculture. It had no readier friend than 
Wright, no more potent advocate than 
his pen, no more stirring music than his 
tongue. We mourn his loss as a nation 
and a people. In the halls of Congress, 
to which he had been elected, he would 
have illustrated Georgiain such a manly 
and heroic way as would have demon- 
strated to all his peculiar fitness for the 
position, and his daring firmness in the 
vindication of Right. But he is no 
more. The silence of the grave rests 
upon his brain and stops the utterance 
of his eloquent lips. His mighty arm is 
palsied by death, and his noble pres- 
ence will no more be among the people 
whom he loved, and whose cause was so 
dear to his heart. His memory and his 
example in every relation of life are left 
to us for our guidance and imitation. 
Let us neyer forget him; and who dare 
assert that his memory will fade? Re- 
calling, as his people do, his glory and 
ri power, they will feel he still lives; 

or 
‘“*He is not: dead whose glorious mind lifts 
thine on high, 
To live in hearts we leave behind isnot to die.” 


[From the Central Georgian—Washington 
county. ] 
DEATH OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 

No event has cast a deeper gloom 
over this community than the death of 
this distinguished Georgian. His so- 
cial relations, his political affiliation, 
and his professional connection with 
this county, were perhaps stronger than 
any other county outside of Richmond, 
and the affections of the people were 
naturally interwoven in him, with their 


20 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


great admiration of him as a man, as an 
advocate, and as a politician. He was 
endowed with a remarkable faculty of 
speech, united toa remarkable quick— 
ness of perception of the salient points 
of any subject which he touched. This 
remarkable faculty made him an exces- 
sively strong debater in the forum and 
as a nisi prius lawyer he did not have 
a superior and we doubt if he had an 
equal in the State. But his untimely 
death makes it more a matter of regret 
to his friends and admirers in this com- 
munity in the fact that he was the 
member elect to Congress, and their ex- 
pectations were fullwith the most bril- 
liant anticipations to see his powers 
tried in other fields in defense of the 
rights and liberties of his people, which 
he himself cherished with such burning 
and undying affection. They were con- 
fident of his personal triumph—they 
were sure of the victorious vindication 
of their character, whether it brought 
fruits or not. 


[From the Sandersville (Washington county) 
erald.] 


OUR LAMENTED DEAD. 


Since last the Herald visited you, 
reader, the death angel has been at work, 
and borne away the people’s friend—the 
gifted lawyer, the gallant soldier, the 
noble writer, the pride of the 8th Con- 
gressional District—GrnreRaAL AMBROSE 
R. Wrient. After an illness of some 
weeks, he died calmly and peacefully on 
the forenoon of the21st December, aged 
about 47 years. And thus hassat one of 
the brightest stars that ever rose upon 
this part of the political horizon. But 
it is not our purpose now to eulogise 
our friend. ‘To others more. competent 
be this sad pleasure. 

When, as it were, borne upon a pass- 
ing breeze, the rumor reached Sanders- 
ville that Gen. Wright was dead, no one 
could believe it. Neighbor asked neigh- 
bor if he had heard the report, and part- 
ed hoping ’twas not true. At last came 
the fatal telegram. Tootrue. Andsad- 
ness, like a pall, settled over the hearts 
of all. - 

Can it be that this noble man is gone 
from us forever? That his manly form 
shall never grace the halls of justice, or 
his eloquent tongue plead for the right 
and give utterance to thoughts that 
breathe and words that burn? Mother 
earth claims her own; in the hearts of his 
countrymen will ever live his noble vir- 


tues, while baskingin the sunlight above 
rests from its labors the redeemed spirit 
of him so honored and so beloved. 


[From the New York World, 27th.] 


In the death of General A. R. Wright, 
who expired at Augusta, Ga., on the 
morning of the 21st instant, the South 
sustains a very great loss. Thereis no 
man in that country whose promise of 
usefulness was brighter, and fond an- 
ticipations were entertained, not alone in 
his native Georgia but in other of the 
ill-treated commonwealths of the South, 
that when his voice was heard in the 
Forty-third Congress, to which he had 
just been elected, the people of the 
United States would learn that all the 
traditional fire, energy and eloquence of 
the South of happier days survived. 
General Wright had been a good and 
valiant soldier of the Confederacy ; as a 
lawyer he was that rare but admirable 
compound of the advocate and the 
judge, with all the dispassionate acumen 


| of the one and all the ornate and glow- 


ing oratory of the other ; as a politician 
he was true as_ steel to the principles of 
constitutional liberty. In every point 
of view he was a truly representative 
Southerner, and his utterances in Con- 
gress, had he been spared to deliver 
them, would have faithfully delineated 
his people. The true, long-stifled voice\ 
of the outraged and bleeding South 
would have been at last heard. The 
fulfillment of this high destiny by one 
so well fitted for its accomplishment has 
not, however, been vouchsafed. The 
old leaders of the South are silent; the 
new generation, who poured out the 
blood of their earlier manhood in the 
Confederate armies, and in their middle 
age were maturing and ripening every 
day into vigor and excellence, have just 
lost in his death a chieftain among 
them, and itis not surprising that at 
such aloss, so sudden and so great, 
Georgia and her sister Statesare mourn- 
fully conscious of still another great 
bereavement and trial. 

General Wright was born in 1826, in 
Jefferson county, Georgia, and was con- 
sequently at the time of his death in 
the full prime of life. In person he was 
tall and stately, of dignified demeanor 
and bearing, with a sense of power and 
manly vigor ever, present in the flash of 
a steady and determined eye. Person- 
ally he was a noble specimen of the 
Saxon type of manhood, and intellectu- 


a 


a TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


ality had the hardy good sense and the 
imposing self-equipoise which are the 
mental characteristics of the same blood. 
Early in life he came to the bar, andhad 
won a distinguished position before the 
war. When this broke out he instantly 
offered his services, and rose rapidly till 
he obtained the rank of Major General, 
participating in all the more sanguinary 
and desperate conflicts of Lee’s army, 
and more than once pouring out his 
blood upon the field. Since the war 
there has been perhaps no man in Geor- 
gia, unquestionably now the leading 
State of the South, who has been so oft- 
en honored with important and delicate 
public trusts. Everything the punitive 
legislation of Congress permitted was 
given him by the people, and as soon as 
the amnesty act rendered him eligible 
he was chosen to Congress by a hand- 
some majority over the Administration 
candidate and anindependent Democrat, 
the son-in-law of ex-Senator Toombs. 
In the moment of victory, however, so 
well won andso well deserved, he was 
taken away. The sun which had just 
lifted, as it were, the clouds from his fu- 
ture, only lighted the pathway to his 
tomb. 


SANDERSVILLE, December 25, 1872. 


Perhaps no event since the war has 
impressed the people of this section 
and of the State generally with sucha 
sense of profound sadness as the death 
of this distinguished soldier, patriot, 
statesman and orator. His loss is simply 
irreparable. From the mountains to 
the seaboard, from the Savannah to the 
Chattahoochee, it is regarded as a public 
calamity, 

How mysterious indeed are the ways 
of Providence—how inscrutable are its 
decrees? In the very zenith of his 
intellectual vigor ; in the very bloom of 
his physical manhood ; in the very hour 
when tardy justice had acknowledged 
his high claims, and paid tribute to his 
merit, he has been cut down by re- 
morseless disease, and now sleeps 
in the silent tomb. It is impos- 
sible, in any one simple and imper- 
fect sketch, to do justice to the character 
and qualities of Ambrose Ransom 


21 


Wright, were we even qualified todo so. 
From early boyhood he gave promise of 
that brilliant and successful career 
which has been so sadly closed. Before 
he attained the full stature of manhood, 
was foreshadowed that striking individu- 
ality, that inimitable sarcasm, fertile 
wit and matchless eloquence which made 
him so famous, and distinguished him 
above all others wherever he went. He 
was, indeed, a remarkable man, and 
possessed elements of character and of 
mind rarely to be met with. 

With a nature peculiarly aggressive, 
and mental powers singularly clear, 
lucid and original, with readiness of re- 
course, indomitable energy, and daunt- 
less courage, he impressed all who met 


| him on the rostrum or in the forum that 


|he was a ‘‘foeman worthy of their 


steel.” Bold, vigilant, ingenious and 


‘faithful in the conduct of his Gauses at 


the bar, with a judgment of men and a 
discrimination never surpassed, he early 
achieved that distinction as an advo- 
cate which at once excited the admira- 
tion and enthusiasm of his friends, and 
commanded the respect of his adversa- 
ries. 

Nothing seemed to daunt or discour- 
age him ; difficulties which would appal 
and demoralize others, served but to 
sharpen his faculties, and intensify his 
energy, and he would brush away ob- 
stacles from his path as lightly and 
easily ‘‘as the spirit of the storm cloud 
throws vapor from the sky.” With a 
wonderful versatility he combined in 
rare and exquisite harmony the qualities 
of the contemplative statesman with 
those of the brilliant orator and ready 
writer. 

His skill in the minute details of busi- 
ness was not extended or acquired at 
the expense of comprehensive views, 
or general powers. He grappled with 
great questions of law with a readiness 
and facility which astonished those of 
his friends who were familiar with his 
habits and knew how little time his 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


arduous and manifold duties gave him 
for study and preparation. In the dis- 
play of those forensic powers which 
‘made him peerless in the court room, 
while he adorned his oratory profusely 
with all the rich decorations of rhetoric, 
he fortified himself with invincible 
logic and masterly argumentation, for 
though he always ‘‘cultivated the 
foliage,” he never did so ‘“‘to the pre- 
judice of the fruit.” In the language 
of Macaulay, he had a_ wonderful 
talent ‘‘for packing thought close and 
rendering it portable.” He com- 
bined readiness with research, gravity 
with humor and pleasantry, and stern 
decorum with brilliancy and wit. In 
the midst of great excitement and con- 
fusion, his demeanor was cool and col- 
lected. How forcibly has his serene 
and placid countenance impressed the 
casual observer at the very moment he 
was gathering his strength for the in- 
tellectual struggle ; once upon his feet 
and confronting his adversary, how 
changed his demeanor, how mobile and 
expressive the face just so stoical and 
indifferent; how commanding his physi- 
cal presence, how impressive his ges- 
ticulation. It was then that his whole 
nature seemed aroused, then that light- 
nings flashed from his eye, and like 
Pericles ‘this tongue was armed with 
thunder.” 

Wright was no less distinguished as a 
soldier than he was as a lawyer and 
statesman. Harly in his brilliant mili- 
tary career he gave evidence of an apti- 
tude for the field, and displayed an ex- 
ecutive ability which made ‘him after- 
wards so prominent among our Southern 
heroes who went forth to battle for the 
Lost Cause. Emotions of no ordinary 
nature must stir the heart of every true 
Georgian in recalling his chivalric deeds 
and unexampled heroism. Among the 
gallant sons of our noble State who ral- 
lied around that never to be forgotten 
banner—the red, white and blue—the 
name and fame of Wright will go down 


to history in imperishable honor and re- 
nown. It is true thata cruel fate has 
consigned him to an untimely graye, but 
the memories which cluster about his 
gallant deeds will live forever in the 
hearts of his countrymen. 


‘On fame’s eternal camping ground 
His silent tent is spread, 

And glory guard’s with solemn round, 
The bivouac of the dead.” 


With Wright’s private character and 
qualities, none were better acquainted 
than the writer of this feeble tribute to 
his memory, and however imperfect 
this sketch, it is an offering upon the 
altar of a sacred friendship, the memory 
of which finds us lingering near his 
shrine, how worthless soever may be the 
offering which we bring to it. To the 
casual observer, Wright’s character 
might haye seemed harsh at times and 
his nature cold and repelling, but never 
was there a greater mistake; those who 
formed this unjust estimate either had 
no knowledge of his noble nature or 
took their opinions from men who had 
no more acquaintance with it than them- 
selves. His was a decided character, 
and to be misunderstood and miscon- 
strued is the natural and legitimate 
heritage of all such men. 

He was a stranger to dissimulation, 
and detested hypocricy to such an extent 
that even for the attainment of his am- 
bitious aspirations, the word policy was 
unknown to his vocabulary. His at- 
tachments were stong and permanent, 
and when he found a friend he “ grap- 
pled him with hooks of steel.” ; 

He was eminently brave and intrepid, 
and like most brave men, he was open 
and sincere. 

His nature was characterized by great 
personal reserve, but-beneath this cold 
exterior, and oftentimes frigid demean- 
or, beat as warm and truea heart as ever 
throbbed in the human breast. _ 

’Tis true he had his faults; but who of 
us have them not. ‘‘He that is without 
sin among you let him cast the first 
stone.” His faults have been buried 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


with him, and many though they may 
have been, he had virtues enough to 
overshadow them all. 


, 
“* But speak no more of his renown, 
Lay your earthly fancies down, 
And in yon lonely graveyard leave him. 
God accept him, Christ receive him.” 
WASHINGTON. 


Aruanta, Ga., December 27, 1872. 
Editors Chronicle & Sentinel : 

It may be said, and truly, ‘“‘ Death 
loves a shining mark.” Little did I 
think, when I last addressed you, that I 
should nevermore address the CHRONI- 
CLE AND SENTINEL with the editorial staff 
unbroken. About the hour of 2 o’clock, 
p. m., on the memorable day of the 
melancholy death of the lamented Gen. 
A. RB. Wright, I was attending to my 
routine of duties at my usual place of 
business, when a friend stopped for a 
moment, and looking in the door, said : 
“Your friend, Ranse Wright, is dead.” 
This doleful announcementI shall never, 
never forget; and for sometime not a 


word could I utter. 

In less than one hour after the tele- 
graph had brought this sad news to 
the city, it was known by thousands, 
who were bowed down with grief and 
profound sorrow at this great loss to 
our State. 

General Wright was truly a great man, 
in the true sense of that term, and, 
taken in all his parts, had but few su- 
periors in this or any other country. 
The distinguished military chieftain, the 
learned and able advocate, the fearless, 


bold yet consciencious politician, one | 


of the ablest political writers of the 
age, an’orator and statesman—thus, poor- 
ly expressed, was the lamented dead. 
Although a stranger to the bereaved 
widow and children of Gen. Wright, I 
would tender this my feeble testimonial 
of condolence and heartfelt sympathy to 
them in their great and irreparable loss, 
for although every Georgian must mourn 
this sad event, yet, the crushing blow 
must fall in tenfold more severity on 
those of his own beloved ones than upon 
the ontside world. The death of no man 
in Georgia would have caused more 
sincere regret in this city than has been 
felt and expressed in the loss of this dis- 


tinguished son of our beloved old Com- 
monwealth. 

The people here felt the need of able 
statesmen in Congress since the war 
from the Southern States, and especial- 
ly have we felt this necessity in Geor- 
gia, and the people all over the State 
were rejoiced to know that Gen. Wright 
was to represent us in the councils of 
the nation for some years; but, alas, for 
all human hopes and human expecta- 
tions, we were doomed to disappoint- 
ment, aod our fond anticipations have 
been blasted. Ex-Gov. Crawford, Lin- 
ton Stephens and now General A. R. 
Wright, all these in one brief year from 
the same section of the State have 
passed from earth, but left bright.re- 
cords behind. J. W. J. 


Editors Chronicle and Sentinel : 
Permit me to drop the sprig of friend- 
ship upon the bier of the departed. It 
has been the good fortune of the writer 
to have long known the departed and 
lamented Wright, and I knew him only 
to love his social virtues, and revere his 
intellectual gifts. Sudden, as well as 
sad, is the stroke that to-day not only 
clothes his stricken family, but a whole 
people in mourning for the departed 
dead. One can scarce realize the event 


'_that Gen. A. R. Wright is dead; that 


he does not ‘‘ stim live!” 

This a blow sudden, and unexpected, 
which has fallen upon his family and his 
many friends. How mournful the 
thought that one around whose brow 
there clustered so much of honor; and 
around whose name and character there 
gathered so much of hope for the future 
of our country—the expectancy of his 
people, now lies uprooted! General 
Wright, by the unaided strength of his 
own mind, had spurned from his path 
each obstacle that impeded his progress, 
and rolled back the clouds which darken- 


ed his morning march—who, in his 
youth of manhood, had reached an emi- 
nence of social, military, political and 
journalistic fame and influence which, 
to a soulless ardent, might have seemed 
the topmost pinnacle, but which to him 
was but a momentary resting place, 


24 


from whence, with a determined will, he 
would have, ere long, leaped into the 
arena of our Federal forum and there 
have lent his genius and his inflnence to 
the calming of the troubled waves of 
political discord which threaten to roll 
over and bear down in their onward 
sweep constitutional liberty, and for- 
ever bury out of sight all that is dear to 
an American citizen. His grand mis- 
sion accomplished, the storm of politi- 
cal passion lulled, he would then have 
prepared to enjoy with his fellow-coun- 
try men the sun of glory which would 
have glowed around him, warming and 
-cheering once more into life and arima- 
tion the now down trodden-millions of 
his native South; but 


‘‘Why sudden drops his crest ? 
The shaft is sped, the arrow’s in his breast.” 


Death here cannenized a noble name, 
and the seal of the sepulcher must for- 
ever exclude from its slumbering tenant 
the breath of envy. The flowers, the 
birds, the waves, thousand melodies of 
vernal life, and nature, will come back, 


but he of whom we write will return no | 


more! 

The death of Gen. Wright at this time 
is truly felt, not only asa calamity to his 
State, but to his country. It was but afew 
brief days ago that he was elected asa 
Representative to the Forty-third Con- 
gress of the United States. But the ex- 
pectancy of his constituency and his 
State now liescold in death. May the 
lesson here taught usin the death of one 
who had not yet reached the zenith of 
his manhood, and yet so honored and 
beloved, uot be lost upon us. May it 
make us less ambitious for the honors 
and fame of this world, which so soon 
fade and pass away. 

“*The boast of heraldy, the pomp of power, 

And all that beauty, all that wealth e’er 


ave 

Await alike, the inevitable hour— 

The paths of glory lead but to the grave 

To his stricken family, in this their 
hour of sad bereavement and irrepara- 
ble loss, I would fain drop the tear of 
heartfelt sympathy and condolence for 
the lossof one around whom there clus- 
tered the joys and affections of the past 
and the hopes of the future ; but whose 
great mission isnow done, and, with the 
myriads that have gone before him, lies 
amid the cold and broken pinions of 
thedead, there, there to sleep! But it 
is the sleep that awaits the resurrection 
morn, when the trumpet of the Arch 


1» 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


Angel shall awaken all to that glad at- 
tune around the Throne of God, where 
husband and wife, father and children, 
shall bask in the sunlight of His glory 
for ever more ! C. P. Cunver. 
Washington, D. C., Dec. 22d, 1872. 


AruEens, GA., December 27, 1872. 

At a meeting of the old ‘‘ Athens 
Guards,” held to-day, for the purpose of 
taking action in regard to the death of 
General A. R. Wright, of Augusta, Col. 
H. C. Billups was called to the Chair, 
and J. P. Dorsey requested to act as 
Secretary. 

A committee, consisting of A. L. 
Mitchell, G. H. Palmer, S. D. Mitchell, 
J. 8. Williford and M. G. Lumpkin, 
were appointed to offer resolutions for 
the action of the meeting. 

‘The committee, through their Chair- 
man, offered the following resolutions ; 


WuHerEAS, General Ambrose Ransom 
Wright has recently departed this life, 
we, the surviving members of Compan 
“K,” Third Georgia Regiment, of whic 
regiment General Wright was the origi- 
nal Colonel, deeming it our duty and 
melancholy pleasure to present this, our 
tribute, to his memory as a citizen, as a 
soldier, as a statesman and patriot, and, 
as a lawyer, do adopt the following 
resolutions: 

1st. That in the death of General 
Wright, Georgia has lost a citizen in 
whom we all had an interest. The 
death of him who stood at the head of 
one of our leading political journals, 
and contributed so largely in directing 
the political sentiment of the State, is 
indeed a loss for which we as a people 
appropriately mourn. 

2d. That no braver soldier ever shed 
his blood beneath ‘the starry cross of 
the Lost Cause,” and when ages shall 
have rolled on, the descendants of South- 
ern soldiers will revere his memory as 
ahero in the strife for constitutional 
liberty. 

3d. That as astatesman and a patriot, 
Georgia and this country has lost a 
great man—one who has ever defended 
the liberties of the people in the forum, 
on the hustings, in deliberative assem- 
blies, and on the sanguinary field of 
battle, and one whose clarion voice, had 
not death silencedit, would have sound- 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


ed forth in the halls of the next Con- 
gress, in the vindication of the right, 
and in resistance to the wrong. 

4th. That as a lawyer, he possessed 
those rare attributes which make men 
truly eloquent—vyiz: the intellect to see 
the truth, the heart to feel the truth, 
and the courage to speak the truth.— 
Now, alas, that intellect has ceased its 
searching on earth; that heart, which 
could ‘‘feel another’s woe,” now slum- 
bers beneath the sod; and that voice, so 
often heard in the cause of humanity 
and justice, is hushed in the stillness 
of the tomb. 

5th. That we tender to the family of 
General Wright the heartfelt condolence 
of comrades ina holy cause. 

6th. That a copy of these proceedings 
be forwarded to the family, and that 
copies be furnished the Athens and Au- 
gusta papers, with the request that they 


publish them. A. L. Mircuett, 
Chairman. 
The resolutions were unanimously 
adopted. H. C. Bruuvues, 
Chairman. 


J. P. Dorsey, ‘Secretary. 


Tribute of Respect to the Memory of 
Gen. Ambrose Ransom Wright. 


Tuesday morning, afew minutes be- 
fore the hour for the Superior Court to 
convene, at the suggestion of Hon. Wm. 
T. Gould, the members of the Bar met 
in the grand jury room. 

Taking the Chair, Judge Gould stated 
that the object of the meeting was to re- 
ceive the report of the committee ap- 
pointed at the adjourned October term 
of the Court to draw up resolutions rela- 
tive to the death of General A. R. 
Wright, and asked if said committee 
were ready to report. 

Responding, Hon. H. W. Hilliard, 
chairman of the committee, presented 
the following preamble and resolutions : 


Wuersas, In the order of Divine 
Providence, Gen. Ambrose R. Wright, a 
member of this Bar, has been removed 
from the present world, we, his associates, 
wishing to pay atr bute to his memory, 
unanimously adopt the following resolu- 
. tions: 

1, Resolved, Thatin the death of Gen. 
Wright the Bar has sustained a loss 
which we feel with deep sensibility. 


25 


2. Resolved, That we recognizein the 
eminence attained by Gen. Wright the 
result of the possession of fine natural 
abilities, commendable diligence and 
extraordinary energy; that he was a 
shining example of the success which 
follows the vigorous prosecution of the 
legal profession, and that at the time of 
his death he had reached the enviable 
summit from which he could look for- 
ward to years of useful and honorable 
labor. 

3. Resolved, That asa mark of respect 
to the memory of our deceased brother, 
we will wear the usual badge of mourn- 
ing for thirty days. : 

4, Resolved, That his Honor Judge 
Gibson be requested to order these reso- 
lutions to be entered on the minutes of 
the Court ; that a copy be furnished to 
the family of Gen. Wright ; and that 
they be published in the city papers. 


On motion of Hon. W. Hope Hull, 
the resolutions were unanimously adopt- 
ed. 

In open Court, Judge Gould an- 
nounced the action of the meeting of 
the members of the Bar, in adopting 
resolutions expressive of their sense of 
loss to the profession in the death of 
General Wright. 


REMARKS OF HON. H. W. HILLIARD. 
Hon. H. W. Hilliard presented the 
resolutions to the Court, and, moving 
their adoption, said: 


May it Purase Your Honor—There 
are many gentlemen here who were ac- 
quainted with General Wright longer 
than myself. But my acquaintance with 
him began before I came to this Bar. 
When I was actively engaged in politi- 
eal life I met General Wright at a great 
popular convention in Atlanta, and 
from that time to the day of his death 
our intercourse was never interrupted. 
There was all the time an interchange of 
those marks of esteem which I believe 
that he uniformly entertained for me, 
and which I certainly felt for him. 

I concur in the language of the reso- 
lution which speaks of Gen. Wright as 
having attained an eminence from which 
he would look forward to long years of 
useful and honorable labor. Certainly 
one of the noblest and most satisfactory 
results of life is to reach a position 
where our labors may be useful to man- 
kind, and acquire honorable distinction 


26 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


for ourselves. And I know no field of 
secular employment where one may hope 
to accomplish this most desirable and 
fortunate position so successfully as in 
the pursuit of the profession which en- 
gaged the talents of the distinguished 
gentleman to whose memory we propose 
to pay a tribute to-day. 

Some one has said that the science of 
government is the only subject within 
the range of human pursuit worthy of 
the attention of a man. There is so 
close a connection between the profes- 
sion of a lawyer, and that of a states- 
man that we might consider the claim 
of the study of government, broadly as 
it is stated, without doing any injustice 
to our honorable profession. To uphold 
good government is a proper task for 
a lawyer, and such tasks have en- 
gaged lawyers in all the successive 
periods of human history, since con- 


greatly admired, and I find it difficult to 


remain silent when it is proper to speak . 


of him. For weeks after his death the 
press of the State teemed with articles, 
editorial and communicated, evoked by 
that event ; and journalists in other 
States wrote well and eloquently of the 
distinguished dead. It would be diffi- 
cult to add anything to what was said 
then, and has been so well said here this 
morning. Nevertheless, in response to 
an impulse of my own heart, I shall ven- 
ture to speak to the resolutions, if 
only to say that I heartily approve 
them. I shall not weaken what 
words of praise I may speak of the dis- 
tinguished departed by using the lan- 
guage of extravagent eulogy. I shall 
not claim for him perfection. He was 
a man and had his share of man’s faults 
and infirmities. It was not because he 
was exempt from these that we exalted 


stitutional liberty first appeared in the| him when living and now seek to honor 


progress of civilization. 
Hooker says 


him dead; but because with the faults 


most eloquently that}|common to all, he had in an uncom- 


‘Taw has her seat in the bosum of} mon degree intellectual and moral quali- 
God, and her voice is the harmony of; ties of the highest order. He had a 


the Universe.” 

Surely we cannot contribute better to- 
wards the harmony of the world than by 
giving our support to good government. 
Yo. maintain law is to help to uphold 
the political institutions which protect 
a free people. 

To say thus of our departed brother, 
that he was a lawyer of noble aims and 
high attainments, is to give him great 
praise. 

Gen. Wright was well known for the 
energy with which he pursued his pro- 
fession, and the fidelity with which he 
adhered to the rights of his clients. 

I might speak of the distinctions 
which he attained in political and mili- 
tary life, but I limit myself to this brief 
notice of him as a member of the Bar. 


REMARKS OF HON. J. B. CUMMING. 
Hon. J. B. Cumming, in seconding 
the motion of Mr. Hilliard, spoke as 


follows: 

May rr Pursszt Your Honor—I rise to 
second the request made by my Brother 
Hilliard, that the resolutions reported 
from the Bar be spread upon the min- 
utes of the Court. This request will be 
granted as a matter ofcourse. There 
seems, therefore, no occasion to say any- 
thing more. My excuse for remarks in 
themselves superfluous is, that the man 
to whom these proceedings relate I 


soaring intellect, a lofty courage, a true 
gift of eloquence, an untiring devotion 
to his country. More than these, he 
had another gift, not often found even 
with these qualities—what I would call 
the gift of leadership—that gift, subtle 
and not to be analyzed, which in- 
spires some men and enables them 
to lead their fellow men, to arouse 
or restrain them. I myself have 
seen the distinguished dead dis- 
play this quality on one notable oc- 
casion, and without reference to the 
broader and historic field of his labors, 
I know of two other occasions .in which 
he exercised the same gift in this com* 
munity to the prevention of riot, blood- 
shed and disgrace. But all these high 
gifts have been laid low, and we now 
seek to honor his memory. As I looked 
down upon that commanding form, pre- 
pared for its last abode, enveloped in 
that uniform, of any wearer of which it 
is sufficient honor to say, as we may say 
of this one, that he wore it worthily— 
when I thought of the struggling youth, 
succeeded by the manhood of ambition, 
withits fullshare of ambitious labors and 
disappointments ; when I thought of his 
honorable career as a soldier, clouded, 
however, by the common disaster which 
overtook all the soldiers of a lost cause; 
when I thought of his brilliant efforts 
with tongue and pen in the days of our 
oppression; when I thought of all his 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


27 


labors and his disappointments crowned 
with success, and the crown suddenly 
hurled to the dust, I but experienced 
the common sentiment of every heart 
_ on that occasion, that seldom has there 
happened an event comprising so many 
circumstances of profound sadness. 

But, may it please your Honor, while 
we lament, let no one be so unreason- 
able or presumptious as to pity the 
honored dead. It has been said ina 
language older than our own that no 
man can be pronounced eo ppe oui 


the day of his death. As in- 
terpret this saying, its meaning 
is this: however fortunate a man 


may appear and be, to-day and to-mor- 
row, any judgment pronouncing him 
such would be premature before he 
passed beyond the fearful vicissitudes 
which environ life and reputation. For- 
tunate to-day, he may be overwhelmed 
to-morrow. Rich to-day in the posses- 
sion of unblemished reputation, to- 
morrow calumny, or temptation unresist- 
ed, may rob him of that, without which, 
he is poor indeed. Friends, fortune, 
and good name may forsake a man in a 
moment, and so long as he is exposed to 
such calamities he cannot be pronounced 
happy. Where will he be beyond their 
reach save in an honored, grave ? Such 
a haven has been reached by our depart- 
ed friend, and now, for the first time, 
no longer tossed upon the dangerous sea 
of life, but having cast anchor in an 
honored grave, we may venture to hope 
of him what we cannot say of any of 
ourselves—he is happy. 


RESPONSE OF JUDGE WM. GIBSON. 


His Honor Judge Gibson, inresponse, 
delivered the following touching, : elo- 
quent and deserved eulogy: 


In looking over the venerable, the 
middle aged, the young, the bright 
galaxy of professional brethren of the 
Augusta Circuit, one of the brightest 
jewels in her coronal is missing. The 
noble, manly form, intellectual and 
beaming face, bright and flashing eye 
of General Ambrose Ransom Wright 
will never more be seen amongst us. It 
issad. Yea, very sad, to think we shall 
never more behold him here. Never 
again listen to his clarion voice in this 
hall. Never again receive the warm and 
cordial greetings of his pure and gener- 
ous nature. 

All that was mortal of General Wright 


now lies in calm repose beneath his na- 
tive soil. 

The great spoiler, Death, approached, 
and neither medical skill, fervent pray- 
er, tender, watchful and affectionate 
care, nor the gushing, burning tears of 
a devoted wife and children could stay 
his relentless hand. He who had brave- 
ly met dangers in every conceivable 
form, calmly and peacefully, on the 21st 
day of December, 1872, in the prime 
and vigor of physical and mental man- 
hood, with a bright and prosperous 
future before him, amidst the tears and 
sorrows of an entire community, passed 
from t me into an endless eternity atthe 
bidding of the remorseless Reaper. 

For a quarter of a century, in times of 
peace andin times of war, it was my 
good fortune to know General Wright. 
I knew him when affluence and wealth 
supplied his every want. I also knew 
him when robbed of property and de- 
spoiled bya relentless foe, even de- 
barred by harsh military rule from pur- 
suing his profession, and when a small 
garden and afew fruit trees furnished 
his subsistence. I have seen him on the 
battle field, where our glorious flag 
floated in triumphant pursuit of a flee- 
ing foe. I have seen him amidst the 
wounded, dead, and the dying. Iwas 
with him in the camp and on the long, 
wearisome march. I have seen him at 
home when plenty supplied his every 
want, andin the bivouac and onthe 
march when even a crust of bread could 
not be procured. Yes, I saw him 
when defeat, starvation and ruin seemed 
inevitable—where poor, frail human na- 
ture is most tried and tempted, both in 
prosperity and adversity. I have both 
known and seen Gen. Wright under 
trial and amidst the most trying vicis- 
situdes, and under all the circum- 
stances of calamity and misfortune.— 
He was atrue man at all times and 
under all circumstances, withstanding 
alike the blandishments of power and 
the frowns and threats of oppression. 
General Wright possessed and wore no 
mask to screen or conceal his true na- 
ture. In the true image of his Maker he 
stood erect; as in His immediate pres- 
ence with no dissimulation or deception. 
With as gentle and kind a nature as ever 
mortal man possessed, almost divine in its 
beauties and its tenderness, he possessed 
no tolerance for errors intentionally com- 
mitted. No man can say he saw and 
approved the right, and yet the wrong 
pursued, 


28 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT, 


“What conscience dictates to be done 
Or warns us not to do ~ 

This, teaches more than hell toshun, 
That, more than Heaven pursue.” 


Independent in thought and action, 
when conscious rectitude directed, he 
yielded notto the fawning of sycophants, 
to the seductions of wealth or to the 
harsh biddings of the tyrant and op- 
pressor. 

At the early age of eighteen he was 
admitted to practice law in the Courts 
of the State, and soon established a 
reputation in his profession which yield- 
ed a competent support, and placed him 
among the leaders of the bar of the 
Middle Cireuit. As an advocate he had 
few equals. He never failed to see and 
to present in the most vivid light the 
strong points of his client’s cause, and 
to make prominent the weak points of 
his adversary. His attack was more 
than skillful, his defense wonderfully 
stragetic. Nature seemed to have de- 
signed him for the profession of law, 
and his success was truly wonderful. 

Upon the stump, when a mere boy, he 
was a foeman worthy of the best steel, 
and with those renowned and skilled 
gladiators, Toombs and Stephens, near 
twenty yearsago, himself just starting 
in his political career, on their own 
ground and appointed places, he fully 
sustained himself and met the most 
sanguine expectations of enthusiastic 
partizans and friends. 

As Senator and President of the Sen- 
ate in our most perilous times he ex- 
hibited singular fitness and ability for 
a great and successful parliamentary 
leader. 

His grand military career is a part of 
the history of Georgia, to which every 
true man can point with pride. EHniter- 
ing the ranks as a private soldier, his 
gallantry, intelligence and skill, his 
aptitude for military affairs, soon 
won for him the Coloneley of the Third 
Georgia Regiment, at the head of which 
command, his sagaciousness, great 
coolness under fire, and intrepid 
bravery on the field of battle, won for 
him in a comparatively short time his 
spurs as a Brigadier General. His 
brigade was known in the Army of Vir- 
ginia as ‘‘ Wright’s Invincible Brigade,” 
which title it fully sustained atthe bat- 
tles of second Manassass, Sharpsburg, 
Chancellorsville, Fredicksburg, Gettys- 
burg, the Wilderness, and in many en- 
gagements in front of Richmond and 
Petersburg and elsewhere in Virginia, 


Maryland and Pennsylvania. His re- 
nown in the Army of Virginia was equal 
to that of any commander, and only sur- 
passed by his successes in civil life. In 
the list of glorious names furnished by 
Georgia from civil hfe, none shone more 
conspicuously than did that of General 
Wright. 

At the second battle of Manassas, 
when the man with his headquarters in 
the saddle was reinforced and our shat- 
tered and broken ranks seemed to falter, 
well do I remember when the matchless 
Lee gave the order toadvance ‘‘Wright’s 
Invincible Brigade,” and as the order 
to double quick was given, his emphatic 
remark was, ‘‘ That charge will settle 
it.” And it did, for by nightfall the 
enemy had been fully-routed and not a 
Federal soldier was to be seen upon the 
field of battle, except the dead, the 
wounded and the prisoners, 

If time permitted and the occasion 
were opportune, I would state numer- 
ous instances of the great skill and 
courage with which he handled his com- 
mand in other engagements, in some of 
which more Federal soldiers were cap- 
tured by his command than they num- 
bered men. 

Not a private soldier but remembers 
with pride and satisfaction the victo- 
rious shout sent along the whole line, 
on that ever memorable night at the 
Wilderness, when Grant, with his beaten 
forces, withdrew from our front. 

To enumerate his gallant and heroic 
deeds upon the field of battle, his nu- 
merous achievements, his great watch- 
fulness and kind care for his men, on 
the march, in the camp, at the hospitals, 
would exhaust this occasion. This all 
who knew him will attest, that where 
dangers were greatest and bullets thick- 
est,, his inspiring presence was seen. 
Amidst the miasmas of the historic 
Chickahominie, on Chickamicomico’s san- 
dy beach, in the sterile mountain passes 
of the Blue Ridge, he patiently endured 
every danger and inconvenience with 
the fortitude and fidelity of a true hero. 
Upon his brilliant escutcheon no dark 
spot of dishonor isto be seen. The 
sword drawn by him was never dis- 
honored, and on the fiercest fields of 
carnage and strife, where the heroic 
bled and the intrepid fell, there too was 
the gallant Wright, in the hottest and 
thickest of the fight, with words of cheer 
for his brave comrades. All that human 
skill could devise; all that mortal man 
could endure; all that heroism and gal- 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


lantry could suggest, he did for freedom 
and liberty; for honor and justice. Yet, 
as the best rooted and stoutest oaks of 
the forest, beneath whose thick green 
shades tired and worn nature has been 
refreshed and strengthened, are often 
torn down and destroyed by ruthless 
hands, so our cause was destined too to 
fail. Yet erushed, broken and almost 
despairing, Gen. Wright, while his life 
lasted, maintained that cause’s honorand 
his own pure and unsullied. 

I know of but one pursuit in life in 
which it can be said Gen. Wright was a 
failure, and that was in the art of getting 
rich. He possessed none of the craft to 
cireumvent gold. ‘Lhe cries too of the | 
suffering poor found a ready lodgment 
in his generous heart; selfishness was 
no part of his nature. He was magnani-| 
mous and liberal to a fault, and too often 
aided when he was but illy able to ren- 
der assistance. 

I will not invade the sacred precincts | 
of home, hearth and fireside. As a hus- 
band and father he was all that was 
fond, generous, affectionate, devoted 
and indulgent. This is holy ground and 
T forbear, as language cannot adequately 
express his many noble qualities in the 


~ family circle. 


With the tears of his bereaved wife | 
and children are mingled the tears of 
multitudes of his countrymen and the) 
tears of his former comrades in arms. | 
Yet this grief and this sorrow will be 
mixed with pride when memory recalls 
his brilliant career; and those army com- 
-rades especially will rejoice that by their 
praise, their love and their esteem, their | 
testimony to gallant deeds performed 
and duty nobly done, taey can add a 
single leaf to the laurel chaplet which 
adorns the patriot’s brow. 

I desire on this occasion to add that 

had General Wright been spared to his 
country, his truly conservative course 
would have been of great use and bene- 
fit to his State. He fully comprehended 
the situation, and possessed all the firm- 
ness necessary to present and maintain 
his views. 

Whilst many thought him ultra, noth- 
ing was further from him. And no man 


29 


more than General Wright regretted 
the lawlessness that at one time seemed 
to prevail in certain sections. And 
could he have been spared to serve us 
in the Congress of the United States, 
to which position he had just been elect- 
ed by a most flattering vote, over large 
odds and strong opposition from within 
and without, I am assured he would 
have proyen himself fully equal to the 
emergency, and every true lover of law 
and order would have been made glad, 
even to rejoicing, by his prudent, wise 
and conservative course. 

As a profession, we mourn his untime- 

ly death ; as a people, we mourn be- 
cause we are deprived of his talents and 
his services ; as a society, because one 
of its most unsullied members and 
brightest ornaments has been cut off ; 
as a friend, because that cordial hand 
and warm, generous heart, will never 
greet us more on earth. All human 
hopes must fail, all mortal life must 
perish, and greatness must fade and be- 
come dim in the busy bustling future. 
Temples to the living god, thrones, em- 
pires and republics have, and must 
erumble and fall. Our brother, our 
friend, the husband and the father, has 
but met the common fate of all earthly 
existence. That wise God who numbers 
the hairs of our head, and permits not 
even a sparrow to fall unnoticed has, in 
his inserutible wisdom, bidden it, and 
into the hands of an all merciful and 
just God we commit his immortality, 
trusting confidently thatthe propitiatory 
atonement of the cross is ample and 
sufficient to save the trusting, just and 
illustrious dead. 
_ Confident too that as long as freedom 
and liberty have a votary, courage and 
true manhood an admirer, patriotism a 
follower, the memory and name of Gen. 
Ambrose Ransom Wright will be held 
sacred and kept green. 


Maj. Ganahl moved that the eulogy 
of Judge Gibson be spread upon the 
minutes of the Court. Adopted. 

On motion of Mr. Hull, a copy was 


requested for publication in the city 
papers. 


30 


DIRGE. 


Greeley and Wright. 


One at life’s summit, 
One at its base, 

By the same target, 
Closing their race. 


One in life’s evening, 
One in its prime ; 

Mighty hearts beating 
Double quick time. 


Hill of ambition, 
Toilsome to climb, 

Lowlier position 
Suits life’s decline. 


Yet buoyant in feeling 
And counting no cost, 

Age, with care reeling 
Brain overtossed. 


Life partner dying, 
Youth’s love all quenched ; 
Autumn winds sighing, 


Heart strings sore wrenched, 


Break in their tension, 
Cry ‘‘It is done !” 

** Vanity—vanity 
Under the sun.” 


Grief of a nation, 
Weep at his tomb ; 
A goodly oblation, 
To pour in earth's womb. 
+ * * 
Higher and higher, 
Man in his prime, 
Mounted the ladder ; 
Fame grasped in time. 


Seeth no shadow ; 
Heareth no tread, 

Of coming to-morrow 
To say ‘the is dead !” 


Giddy the height proves, 
Rest him awhile, 

Deep are the heart grooves 
After life’s smile. 


Tell him of victory ? 
He heareth it not ! 

Life’s busy history 
Heedeth he not! 


a ee 
TRIBUTES TO.THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


Gather our sackcloth ; 
The record is true ; 
‘* What shadows we are, 
And what shadows pursue ?” 


* 
Auausta, December 21, 1872. 


OOD ~<a 


IN MEMORIAM. 
GENERAL A. R. WRIGHT 


opt 1872. 


I. 


Room for the great heart stilled too soon, 
O, earth! upon thy sacred breast!— 
Yet, what hath HE to do with rest, 


* 


* 


Whose course but touched its radiant noon ? 


I 


With half his glorious journey done, 
Death’s signal trumpet pierced his ear; 


He bowed his head, ‘‘O Death! Ihear;” 


And passed beyond our mortal sun. 


pees 


But mark how bright with vital flame 
The ways on earth his spirit trod ; 


What though that spirit rests in God ; 


To us he leaves his stainless fame: 


IV. 


Fame plucked from lists of carnage dread, 


Or, nurtured, when the strife did cease, 
In civic halls, and fields of peace, 
Whose verdant laurels crowned his head. 


Vv. 


With double lustre; wide and far 
Proclaiming, lo! a chief af men ; 
Who nobly wrought with sword and pen, 
His guide, Truth's cloudless Polar Star ! 


VI. 


The sword disused, had sought its sheath ; 
Now drops the pen from neryeless hands, 


And all around the sorrowing lands 


Are cries of woe and types of death! 


Vil. 


O, warrior! once thyself a host— 


Thou still dost live, tho’ laid in dust ; 


O, thinker! thou hast left us trust 
In Right and Heaven, tho’ all seem lost! 


Vill. 


Then, while thy passionate requiem swells, 


A hopeful minor threads the strain, 
Whose sweetness makes less wild the pain 
And yearning of our last farewells ! 
Pau H. Hayne. 


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TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


SUPERIOR COURT. 
Adjournment in Honor of the Memory 
of Gen. A. R. Wright—Touching Tri- 
butes by Hon. W. Hope Hull and 
Judge J. S. Hook. 


The Superior Court met yesterday at 
9:30 o’clock, Judge Wm. Gibson presid- 
ing. 

When the Court had been declared 
opened, Hon. W. Hope Hull arose and 
said: 

Your Honor—An event has been com- 
municated to me which it is my sad duty 
to announce to the Court, and to my 

- professional brethren. A distinguished 
and honored member of this Bar—one 
whom we all loved and respected—has 
this morning been taken from us by 
death. Gen. A. R. Wright is no more. 
In the midst of his labors, in the prime 
of his manhood, and just asa new career 
of usefulness and honor was opened 
before him, he is cut down, and all of 
earth, its struggles, its triumphs, and 
its honors, passes away like a Summer 
cloud. 

But a few days since he was among us 
“sin health and strength, of body and of 
mind, with the clear intellect, the sound 
judgment, the determined will, all in 
full activity. 

To day he lies silent and insensible, 
and no more will be seen on the platform 
or in the forum, no more will take part 
in the concerns of life. 

The community by whom he was so 
well known and so highly honored, the 
Bar with whom he has so long mingled 
in the labors, the struggles, and the 
amenities of professional life, and by 
whom he was recognized a leader, must 
deeply feel the shock of this sudden 
bereavement. I move, sir, that in honor 
of his memory, this Court do now ad- 
journ, and that a meeting of the Bar be 
immediately called, to take suitable ac- 
tion on the occasion. 


The motion was seconded by Judge 
Hook in the following eloquent remarks : 


May rr Purast Your Honor—I rise to 
second the motion of Mr. Hull, but be- 
fore doing so, permit me to say that this 
unexpected event fills me, as it does the 
entire community, with a sense of pro- 
found sadness. Never was I more 
shocked than on yesterday morning when 
I called at Gen. Wright’s residence to in- 
quire after his condition, and learned 


31 


from a member of his family that he was 
dying. I have known hin, sir, all my 
life. We were schoolmates in childhood 
in the town of Louisville, and from then 
until now have known him intimately, 
and have always been impressed by his 
superior native abilities,. energy and 
force of character. No one who has 
known him could fail toadmire him for 
his talents, his marked ability and man- 
ly valor. On every field of labor and 
duty he has won for himself the confi- 
dence, the admiration, aud profound re- 
spect of his fellow-citizens. How sad 
that in the midst of so much usefulness, 
in the prime and vigor of his physical 
and intellectual manhood, and with the 
dawn of a still more brilliant future just 
opening before him, he should be sud- 
denly stricken down, 


And all his virtue and his promise fair, 
Should seek the grave to sleep forever there. 


It is known to us all (and the fact gives 
an additional mournful cast to this mys- 
terious dispensation) that Gen. Wright 
had just passed through an exciting 
political campaign, in which he displayed 
signal ability, and received a large vote, 
whereby he was triumphantly elected to 
fill one of the most important positions 
inthe National Council. What a dis- 
appointment to his friends who looked 
forward with pride and confidence to his 
future career upon that high arena, 
where, they felt assured, he would add 
fresh lustre to his already shining laur- 
els and do noble service to the State of 
Georgia, that had honored him as one 
of her chosen representatives. But 
there is still a sadder view, in which 
our hearts compel us to contemplate 
this mournful event, for while the 
community is deeply moved and 
friends mourn, there are those to whom 
he sustained the nearest and dearest 
relations of life, whose hearts are 
completely overwhelmed by this, to 
them, irreparable loss. To them he 
was all in all—their love and pride 
centered in him; and yet he is taken 
from them, and their home egircle is 
made desolate. But I forbear, simply 
invoking the consolations for that smit- 
ten household that the great Disposer 
of events alone can give! It is no won- 
der, in view of this unexpected and un- 
timely death, and these circumstances, 
so well calculated to awaken our ten- 
derest symtpahies and _ sensibilities, 
that we find this whole community 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


ve 


wearing the expression of sadness and 
deep regret. May it please your Hon- 
or, General Wright has been stricken 
down in the prime of his manhood 
and with a bright future before him. 
Let us all stand admonished that no 
circle is exempt from the approach of 
the grim destroyer—that neither talents, 
nor fame, nor great usefulness, can stay 
his hand ; and let us so act and so live 
that when we, too, shall be summoned 
hence, we may die, as he has died, re- 
spected and esteemed by all who know 
us. I second the motion of Mr. Hull, 
that this Court do now adjourn. 


Judge Gibson then declared the Court 
adjourned to the 6th proximo. 


Meeting of the Bar. 


Aveusta, December 21, 1872. 

After the adjournment of the Superior 
Court, a meeting was held by the mem- 
bers of the Bar, for the purpose of taking 
some action in regard to the death of 
General A. R. Wright. 

Upon motion of Major Cumming, 
Judge Gould was called to the Chair. 
Mr. Hilliard moved that Davenport 
Jackson, Hsq., act as Secretary. The 
motion was put and carried. 

The Chairman then announced the 
meeting organized. i 

Whereupon Judge Hilliard arose and 
suggested, in a few eloquent remarks, 
Gen. Wright’s death, and moved that a 
committee of three be appointed by the 
Chair to draft suitable resolutions rela- 
tive to the sad calamity, and report at 
that meeting. 

Judge Gibson offered an amendment, 
to the effect that the report be rendered 
at the next term of the Superior Court. 
This amendment was accepted, and the 
motion thus altered passed unanimously. 


The Chair accordingly appointed Judge 
Hilliard, Mr. Hope Hull and Judge Hook 
on the Committee. 

Major Cumming moved that the mem- 
bers of the Bar attend General Wright’s 
funeral in a body. This was also carried 
unanimously, and the meeting then ad- 
journed. 

Wa. T. Govunp, Chairman. 


Davenport Jackson, Secretary. 


IN MEMORIAM, 

Ata meeting of the ‘‘Macon  Volun- 
teers,” held at the armory of the com- 
pany, in Macon, Ga., the committee ap- 
pointed by Capt. George 8. Jones, to 
draw up suitable resolutions in relation 
to the death of General A. R. Wright, 
made the following report, which was, 
on motion, unanimously adopted : 


The relations which in former years 
existed between the ‘‘Macon Volunteers” 
and their gallant leader, whose sudden 
death has cast a shade of sorrow over 
every patriot heart throughout our land, 
were of a nature caleulated to endear us 
to him in no ordinary manner. 


Early in the struggle for independence 
he drew the sword, which was never 
sheathed until the cause he loved so 
well was lost; and from the beginning 
almost to the very end, our own loved 
corps was never called upon to face the 
enemy, or to endure the privations of 
the tented field, without having General 
Wright to lead them on to victory, or to 
encourage them in the midst of their 
own hardships and their country’s dis- 
asters. 


Our General was no ordinary man. — 
The reputation for gallantry and disci- 
pline which early in the war attached 
itself to ‘‘Wright’s Brigade” was due, in 
an eminent degree, to his untiring en- 
ergy, to thestrength of his individuality. 
and to the rapid development of that 
military genius which had only needed 
ocsasion to kindle into a flame. The 
‘“‘Macon Volunteers” were proud to be 
known as belonging to his brigade, and 
they are proud now to remember that 
when well-deserved promotion necessari- 
ly sundered, to a certain extent the inti- 
macy of his association with us, his in- 
terest in our welfare, as a company and 
as individuals, never flagged for a mo- 
ment. It is not the object of this report 
to sketch the life of the gallant warrior 
and noble statesman who has so sudden- 
ly left us, for that life has passed into 
the history of our own State and of the 
country at large. 

He loved Georgia and she delighted to 
honor him. He loved the people of 
Georgia, and they had but a short time 
since given him a striking evidence of 
their appreciation of the fact, that his 
merit as a statesman was none the less 
marked than his distinction as a soldier 
and the wail of sorrow that has gone up 


a 


TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. 


at his sudden death, from the stricken 
hearts all over our wide country, gives 
still higher evidence of the loss that 
country has sustained. 

Pages might be written upon the life 
and character of such a man, but we for- 
bear, and would only ask in conclusion 
to submit the following resolutions : 

Resolved, 1st. That the members of 
the ‘‘Macon Volunteers” as a company, 
and as individvals, have heard with pro- 
found sorrow of the death of their be- 
loved and gallant leader, General A. R. 
Wright, and feeling as we do, that we can 
sincerely sympathize with his afflicted 
family—and mourning his loss to our- 
selves and country—we offer to his 


33 


stricken ones all the sympathy of which 
our hearts are capable in their great and 
abiding trial. ; 

Resolved, 2d. That this report be 
placed upon the minutes of our Compa- 
ny, and that the Secretary send a copy of 
the same to the family of General Wright, 
as a slight token of the high place he 
occupied in the affections, and will ever 
occupy in the memories of ‘“‘the Macon 
Volunteers.” 


Respectfully submitted. 


Lieutenant Ben B. Sma, 
Private Tuos. C. GRESHAM, 
Private W. W. WRIGLEY. 


Macon, Ga., January 11, 1873. 


7 _ te ee ae 
34 TRIBUTES TO THE MEMORY OF GEN. A. R. WRIGHT. | 


MEMORIAL VERSES ON GEN. A. R. 
WRIGHT. 


BY ANNIE BLOUNT PARDUE. 


One more gallant soldier who proudly wore 
“the Gray, 
One seem ‘sturdy patriot, who kept the foe at 


Has fallen by the wayside—the march of life 
too long, 

Has given the name true Southrons love, to 
History and Song. 

The earthly fight is over, where he bore so 
brave a part; » 

Death smote, as if reluctant, to still so leala 
heart ; 

No cannon’s roar disturbed his dreams, no drum 
notes loud and deep, 

Life’s conflict closed, he sheathed his sword, 
and calmly fell asleep. 


The voice which rang in clarion tones, espous- 
ing Freedom’s cause, 

Which often woke to rapture’s pitch the multi- 
tude’s applause, 

Is hushed—like harp whose golden chords some 
careless hand hath broke. 

As vain we touch its tuneless wires sweet music 
to invoke. 

No more like liquid melody those silver tones 
will roll, 

And thrill, with magic power spell-bound, a 

: nation’ 8 earnest soul, 

No more the woods will echo, as of yore, in 
party fight, 

Democracy’s great rallying cry: 
General Wright ! 


“Hurrah for 


The CHRONICLE is draped in black! his vigorous 
pen is still, 

And thousands who delighted to obey their 
leader’s will 

Will miss that hand, which fought for right, 
and friend or foe spared not ; 

Which left no record here that he would ‘‘dying, 
wish to blot.” 

Perhaps he erred—as mortals will—in judgment 
or in act, 

Perhaps on impulse spoke some word cool 
reason would retract; 

But never truer patriot passed beneath the 
chastening rod ; 

Upon his heart, in gold, was graved, ‘‘My 
Country and my God!” 


Georgia has lost a gallant son—one “twas her 
pride to claim ; 

Tho’ mourning in’ her widow's weeds, bowed 
down with grief, not shame, 

She yet could point to one who dared defend 
her to the last ; 


Who when the mighty wave of civil strife ran 


high and fast, 

As in the old “Third Georgia days” rang out his 
battle cry 

“The Southland bleeds at every pore—men, can 
you see her die? 

Her ship is on the breakers—fierce and wild ‘the 
tempest blows— 

But ‘sink or swim’—let every son defend her 
from her foes. 


“Tl cling yet to her war-worn deck while one 
frail “plank remains, 

Ahd shed my heart’s blood—if there’s need—to 
wash away the stains 

Her proud escutcheon bears to-day from recre- 
ant hands who fawned 

On her in fortune’s gala-day8} then traitorously 

awned 

Her ncnor for the dross of gain—down with the 
bastard crew ! 

Rally, trwe sons, as when of yore, the Gray 
against the Blue. 

While in the old land there remains one spark 
of life and light 

Unfurl her banner to the breeze—the sacred 
Flag of Right !” 


Ambition’s fever-dream is o’er—the patriot’s 
heart is still! 

Within a Senate’s halis those clear, coma 
ing tones will thrill 

A listening crowd no more, nor sway with magio 
eloquence— 

Georgia has one strong voice the less to plead 
in er defense. 

O! fatal year that robbed the world of many a 
sparkling gem. 

Old ‘“‘seventy-two” right royally has set his 
diadem ; 

The ranks of learning and of science he hath 
rifled well ; 

Stars! ye were bright. and shone with power, 
yet at death’s touch ye fell. 


Oh! if the “‘roll” were called again of “Wright's” 
far-famed ‘‘brigade”, 

How few would answer to their names—how 
many cold are laid! 

In that far better land above, where wars are 
known no more, 

Their ‘‘General” will meet a host of “brave 
boys” gone before. 

In that sweet land of peace, thank God! nor 
“Blue” nor ‘‘Gray” is known; 

They kneel as brothers, linked in heart, ’round 
the eternal throne. 

When the great roll is called of those who’ve 
conquered in the fight, 

The fight of Faith—may he Tospond—brave, 
leal, pure-hearted Wright ! 


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